PARTII · Administrative Processes

need for power treatment of how school systems and their partners
process theories can improve educator quality.
self-efficacy theory Carlson, Richard. Don't Sweat the Small Stuff (New
past performance York: Hyperion, 1998). If you can learn to treat the
vicarious experience smaller hassles with more perspective, wisdom,
verbal persuasion
emotional cues
expectancy theory
patience, and with a better sense of humor, you
will begin to bring out the best in yourself as well
as in others.
Leadership
outcomes Darling-Hammond, Linda. The Flat World and Edu-
expectancy cation: How America's Commitment to Equity
instrumentality
FOCUSING QUESTIONS
Will Determine Our Future (New York: Teachers
valence College Press, 2010). The Flat World and Educa-
equity theory tion offers an eye-opening wakeup call concerning 1 What is leadership?
inputs America's future and vividly illustrates what the 2 What is the difference between leadership and management?
comparison other United States needs to do to build a system of
organizational justice high-achieving and equitable schools that ensures 3 Are there traits that differentiate leaders from nonleaders and effective
distributive justice the right to learn for every child. leaders from ineffective ones?
procedural justice
Dufour, Richard, Rebecca Dufour, Robert Eaker, and 4 What kinds of leadership behaviors are more effective than others?
interactional justice
Gayle Karhanek. Raising the Bar and Closing the
goal-setting theory 5 What role does the situation play in whether a leader is effective or
Gap: Whatever It Takes (Bloomington, IN: Solu-
ineffective?
tion Tree, 2010). The authors examine schools and
districts in North America to illustrate how PLC at 6 What are some key situational factors that are significant in determining
Discussion Questions Work is a sustainable and transferable model that which leadership style to use in a given situation?
1. Describe how a school administrator would assess ensures struggling students get the support they
7 What contribution have other contemporary perspectives made in the
the individual needs of employees. need to achieve.
study and practice of leadership?
2. Once needs are assessed, discuss how the school Glickman, Carl. Those Who Dared: Five Visionaries
administrator could use the needs hierarchy theory, Who Changed American Education (New York:
ERG theory, motivation-hygiene theory, and learned Teachers College Press, 2008). Deborah Meier,
needs theory to motivate employees. John Goodlad, James Comer, Ted Sizer, and
Henry Levin share their personal stories in this n this chapter, we attempt to answer these questions concerning leadership
3. Of what practical value is the expectancy theory
to school administrators? What can school admin-
istrators learn from the theory to improve their
effectiveness in motivating employees at work?
4. Of what practical value is self-efficacy theory to
inspirational call to action.
Grubb, W. Norton. The Money Myth: School
Resources, Outcomes, and Equity (New York:
Russell Sage Foundation, 2010). The Money Myth is
an analysis to determine what factors impact student
I in school organizations. We begin our discussion by exploring the nature
of leadership in organizations, in which we define leadership and contrast
leadership from management. Next we examine trait, behavior, and contingency
school administrators? What can school administra- performance. It is these kinds of micro-analyses that
tors learn from the theory to improve their effec- theories of leadership. Then we present and analyze various styles of leadership.
will move our knowledge forward about what
tiveness in motivating employees at work? resources matter to student school performance. We conclude the chapter with a discussion of other contemporary perspectives of
5. How might a school employee's perceived inequity Welch, Jack, with John Byrne. Jack: Straight from the leadership.
be dysfunctional to the school system? Gut (New York: Warner Books, 2001). Jack Welch,
6. What are the four key elements of goal-setting theory, Fortune's Manager of the 20th century and possibly
and how do they pertain to employee motivation? the most influential CEO of the second half of the
twentieth century, reveals the key to his managerial The Nature of Leadership
philosophy. In reflecting on his career at General There is perhaps no subject that has received more attention than the topic of
Suggested Readings Electric, beginning with his first job in the GE plas- leadership. Because of the importance of leadership in our society, it has been the
tics division in 1960 to his rise to CEO in 1981 and subject of thousands of studies, books, and films all designed to say something about
Annenberg Institute for School Reform. Human then to his appointment of his successor in 2000, what leadership is, and how to become a better leader. Despite all this, there is still
Capital (Providence, RI: The Author, 2010). This Welch reports that GE was all about finding and
text provides readers with a comprehensive building great people.
 PARTII · Administrative Processes
a great deal we do not know about leadership. In this
chapter, we will examine some of what we do know.
Are people born to be leaders? Can people learn to
become leaders? Or does leadership depend entirely
on the situation? What personal characteristics
distinguish leaders from nonleaders? What leadership
behaviors distinguish effective leaders from ineffective
leaders? What role do followers play in leadership?
Is each leader equally suited to influence all types of
followers? What role does the context or situation
play with respect to leadership? Do all situations
involving group effort require leadership? These ques-
tions constitute some of the ideas that we will pursue
in subsequent pages.
Leadership Defined
The study of leadership has a long history, dating back
to Plato's Republic in 400 B.C. Many attempts have
been made to define leadership. Unfortunately, almost
everyone who studies or writes about leadership defines
it differently. However, three extensive reviews of the
leadership literature by Bernard Bass,1 Gary Yukl,2 and
Warren Bennis3 have provided a clearer understanding
of the phenomenon. While some conceptual disagree-
ments prevail, one definition of leadership accepted by
many experts is the following: leadership is the process
whereby one individual influences other group mem-
bers toward the attainment of defined or organizational
goals. 4 This definition contains three important aspects:
(a) leadership involves influence; (b) leaqership involves
goal attainments; and (c) leadership requires followers.
Leadership Involves Influence Leadership is an
influence process. The influence process is one in which
a leader changes the actions or attitudes of several group
members or subordinates. Leaders influence many
aspects of behavior in organizations that we have dis-
cussed in previous chapters: organizational struc-
ture (Chapter 2), organizational culture (Chapter 3),
motivation (Chapter 4), and that we will discuss in
1Bernard Bass, The Bass Handbook of Leadership: Theory,
Research, and Managerial Applications (New York: Simon &
Schuster, 2010).
2 Gary Yuki, Leadership in Organizations, 7th ed. (Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2010).
3Warren Bennis, Learning to Lead (New York: Basic Books,
2010).
4 Yukl, Leadership in Organizations.
T'
subsequent chapters: decision making (Chapter 6),
communication (Chapter 7), change (Chapter 8), curric-
ulum (Chapter 13), teaching and learning (Chapter 14),
and human resource management (Chapter 15).
Research has shown, for example, that leaders influence
the organization's structure, followers' group culture;
levels of motivation; performance, absenteeism and
turnover; and the quality of their decision making; com-
munication patterns; and their receptivity to change;
curriculum implementation; and group learning.
Leadership Involves Goal Attainments Leadership
involves the exercise of influence for a purpose-to
attain defined group or organizational goals. That is,
leaders focus on changing the actions or attitudes of
group members that are related to specific goals. The
leaders of a group or organization are the individuals
who exert such influence. An effective leader helps a
group or organization to achieve its goals; an ineffec-
tive leader does not. 5
Leadership Requires Followers The influence pro-
cess implies that leadership is reciprocal. In other
words, leaders influence followers in various ways,
and leaders also are influenced by their followers (e.g.,
see the reciprocal influence theory discussed later in
this chapter). Furthermore, it may be safe to say that
leadership exists only in relation to followers: one can-
not lead without followers. As Chester Barnard, author
of the classic text The Functions of the Executive, stated
" ... leadership implies that followers must consent to
being influenced." 6
All leaders exert influence over group members or
the organization. However, some leaders have formal·
authority to influence, while others do not. Formal
leaders are those individuals who are given the author-
ity (position power) to influence other members in the
organization to achieve its goals.7 Informal leaders have
no formal authority to influence others but sometimes
can exert just as much influence in an organization as
formal leaders do-because of some special skills or
talents they possess that organization members realize
will help them achieve their goals. 8 Although we realize
5Peter F. Drucker, Management: Tasks, Responsibilities,
Practices (New York: Transaction Publishers, 2008).
6Chester
Barnard, The Functions of the Executive (Cambridge,
MA: Harvard University Press, 1938, p. 165).
7Yukl, Leadership in Organizations.
8Ibid.
CHAPTER5 · Leadership
the impact informal leaders can have on a group or
organization, the focus of this chapter is on formal
leadership.
Leadership and Management
To fully understand what leadership is all about, it is
important to examine the difference between leader-
ship and management. The terms leadership and man-
agement tend to be used interchangeably in everyday
speech. However, the two terms, although overlap-
ping at times, are not identical and need to be clearly
distinguished.
The first scholar to take a stand on this issue was
Abraham Zaleznik, with his landmark article published
in the Harvard Business Review in 1977. 9 Zaleznik ar-
gues that both leaders and managers make a valuable
contribution to an organization and that each one's con-
tribution is different. Whereas leaders advocate change
and new approaches, managers advocate stability and
the status quo. Furthermore, whereas leaders are con-
cerned with understanding people's beliefs and gaining
their commitment, managers carry out responsibilities,
exercise authority, and worry about how things get
accomplished.
More recently,John Kotter argues that leadership and
management are two distinct, yet complementary, sys-
tems of action in organizations. 10 Specifically,he states
that leadership is about coping with change, whereas
management is about coping with complexity. 11 For
Kotter, the leadership process involves (a) developing
a vision for the organization; (b) aligning people with
that vision through communication; and (c) motivating
people to action through empowerment and through
basic need fulfillment. The leadership process creates
uncertainty and change in the organization.
In contrast, the management process involves
(a) planning and budgeting, (b) organizing and staff-
ing, and (c) controlling and problem solving. The man-
agement process reduces uncertainty and stabilizes the
organization. Robert House concurs when he says that
management consists of implementing the vision and
9
Abraham Zaleznik, "Managers and Leaders: Are They
Different," Harvard Business Review, 55 (1977): 67-78.
10John P. Kotter, "What Leaders Really Do," Harvard Busi-
ness Review, 68 (1990): 103-111; and John P. Kotter, A Force
for Change: How Leadership Differs from Management
(New York: Free Press, 1990).
11
John P. Kotter, The Leadership Factor (New York: Free Press,
1987).
direction provided by leaders, coordinating and staffing
the organization, and handling day-to-day problems.12
In emphasizing the difference between leaders and
managers, Warren Bennis notes: "To survive in the
twenty-first century, we are going to need a new gener-
ation of leaders-leaders, not managers. The distinction
is an important one. Leaders conquer the context-the
volatile, turbulent, ambiguous surroundings that some-
times seem-·to conspire against us and will surely suf-
focate us if we let them-while managers surrender to
it." 13 More recently, Bennis summarized his previous
quotation as follows: "Managers do things right, while
leaders do the right things." 14
From a comprehensive review of the literature on this
issue, we provide specific differences between leadership
and management (seeTable 5-1 ). The pairs of attributes,
shown in Table 5-1, are presented as the extremes of a
continuum. Most school administrators do not function
at these extremes. However, patterns that tend toward
leadership on the one hand or management on the
other hand are likely to emerge as school administrators
develop and use their skills in the workplace.
As you examine Table 5-1, mark the point on each
continuum item that reflects the relative emphasis on
leadership or management by a person for whom you
have worked. School administrators may lean more
heavily toward either leadership or management at var-
ious times depending on the situation. However, mos{
tend to operate primarily in terms of either the leader-
ship or the management profile. 15
There are several conclusions that can be drawn
from the information presented in Table 5-l. First, good
leaders are not necessarily good managers, and good
managers are not necessarily good leaders. Second,
good management skills transform a leader's vision into
action and successful implementation. Some scholars
believe that effective implementation is the driving force
12
Robert J. House and Robert N. Aditya, "The Social Scientific
Study of Leadership: Quo Vadis?" Journal of Management,
23 (1997): 445-456.
13
Warren G. Bennis, "Managing the Dream: Leadership in the
21st Century," Journal of Organizational Change Manage-
ment, 2 (1989): 7.
14
Warren G. Bennis and Burt Nanus, Leaders: The Strategies
for Taking Charge (New York: HarperCollins, 2007). ·
15
Fred C. Lunenburg, "Leadership versus Management: A Key
Distinction-in Theory and Practice," in F. L. Dembowski
(ed.), Educational Administration: The Roles of Leadership
and Management (Houston, TX: The NCPEA Press/Rice
University, 2007), pp. 142-166.
 PARTII · Administrative Processes CHAPTER5 · Leadership

Table 5-1 Comparisons between Leadership and Management

Leadership Management ADMINISTRATIVE
ADVICE •
Focuses on people Focuses on things
Looks outward Looks inward The BigFiveDimensionsof Personality
Traits
Goal setting Articulates a vision Executes plans
Creates the future Improves the present The Big Fivemodel of personalitystructurecan providea commonVOCObukHyfor lnterpndtngthe
Sees the forest Sees the trees results ot leadershlp trait research.
Employee Relations Empowers Controls
Colleagues Subordinates • Surgency.Surgencymeasuresthe degree to which an • EmotionalStability.This dimensionof personality
Trusts& develops Directs & coordinates individual is sociable,gregarious,assertive,and lead- concernsthe extent to which individualsare calm,
Operation Does the right things Does things right erllke, versus quiet, reserved, mannerly,and with- steady,cool, and self-confident,versus anxious,
Creates change Manages change drawn. Some of the more common personality traits insecure,worried, and emotional. Someof the per-
Serves subordinates Serves superordinates
associatedwith this dimensioninclude dominance, sonality traits associatedwith emotional stability
Governance Uses influence Usesauthority capacity for status or social presence,the need for include composure,self-awarenessand acceptance,
Usesconflict Avoids conflict
Acts responsibly
power, sociability,or assertiveness. and affect.
Acts decisively
• Agreeableness. Agreeablenessmeasuresthe degree • lntellectance.This dimensionof personality concerns
to which individualsare sympathetic,cooperative, the extent to which an individuals Is imaginative,
good natured, and warm, versus grumpy,unpleasant, cultured, broad minded, and curious, versus ,
Table 5-2 Traits of Effective Leaders
disagreeable,and cold. Personalitytraits associated concrete minded, practical, and having narrow
Trait Descrtptton with this dimensioninclude likeability,friendly com- interests.Personalitytraits associatedwith this
pliance, need for affiliation, and opennessto love. dimensionInclude curiosity, broad-mindedness,
Drive Inner motivation to pursue goals. • Conscientiousness.
Conscientiousness
differentiates tolerance, and opennessto experience.
Integrity The will to translate words into deeds individualswho are hardworking,persevering,orga-
Leadership motivation The need to exercise influence over others to reach shared goals nized,and responsiblefrom thosewho are impulsive,
Self-confidence Belief in his or her own leadership skills and ability to achieve goals irresponsive,undependable,and lazy.Personalitytraits Adapted from Roben Hogan, Gordon J. Curphy, and Joyce Hogan,
categorizedunder this dimensionincludeprudence "What We Know About Leadership: Effectiveness and Personality,"
Intelligence Above-overage cognitive ability to integrate and interpret large amounts of information American Psychologist,49 (1994): 503-504. Copyright C 1994 by rhe
Tacit and explicit knowledge about the organization, profession, and technical matters · and ambition,will to achieve,needfor achievement, American Psychological Association. Reprinted by permission.
Task-relevant knowledge
dependability,constraint,and willingnessto work.
Emotional maturity The ability to control his or her feelings and accept criticism
Flexibility AblHtyto respond appropriately to changes in the setting

of organizational success, especially in relatively stable,
"domesticated," organizations like public schools. 16
Third, organizational success requires a combination of
effective leadership and management.17 Furthermore,
team-based organizational structures are extending lead-
ership functions to work groups and cross-department
teams in most modern school organizations. Thus,
there is greater opportunity for more input from group
members at all levels of the organization. 18
16Fred C. Lunenburg, Barbara Thomp son, and Dana Pagani,
The Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ}: Fac-
tor Structure of an Operational Measure, paper presented at
the annual meeting of the American Educational Research
Association, Denver, CO, May 4, 2010.
17Lunenburg, "Leadership versus Management."
lBC!ete Bulach, Fred C. Lunenburg, and Les Potter, Creating
a Culture for High-Performing Schools: A Comprehensive
Approach to School Reform (Lanham, MD: Rowman &
Littlefield, 2008).
TraitTheories
The scientific study of leadership began by concentrat-
ing on personal traits that distinguish leaders from
non-leaders and effective leaders from ineffective ones.
Researchers have identified several such traits. These
are listed in Table 5-2. 19
Leaders have a high need for achievement. This drive
represents the inner motivation that leaders possess
to pursue their goals and encourage others to pursue
theirs. Leaders have a strong need to influence others to
accomplish goals that benefit the team or organization.
They demonstrate confidence in their leadership skills
and the ability to achieve team or organization goals.
They must be trustworthy. To be trusted, they must have
authenticity. Without trust, they cannot maintain the
19Bass,The Bass Handb ook of Leadership; Yuki,Leadership
in Organizations.
loyalty of their followers. At the same time, they have to
be emotionally mature enough to recognize their own
strengths and weaknesses. Moreover, leaders must have
above-average intelligence in order to process enormous
amounts of information. They do not have to be the
smartest in th e group, but they must be smart enough
to analyze a variety of complex alternatives and oppor-
tunities. In addit ion, leaders must have tacit and explicit
knowledge of their social setting. This knowledge and
experience help the leader to recognize opportunities
and understand the organization's capacity to capture
opportunities and the requirements of the situation.
Finally, leaders must have the ability to adapt to the needs
of followers and the requirements of the situation.
The lead ership traits identified in Bass's and Yuki's
review 20 (see Table 5-2) easily map onto the Big Five
model of personality structure endorsed by many
20 Ibid.
modern psychologists. 21 This model holds that leader-
ship traits as perceived by supervisors and subordinates
can be described in terms of five bro ad dimensions:
surgency, agreeableness, conscientiousness, emo-
tional stability, and intellectance. (See Administrative
Advice 5-1.)
A study of personality traits and leadership effec-
tiveness in education 22 is consistent with the Big Five
21
Pierce J. Howard, The Owner's Manual for Personality at
Work: H ow the "Big Five" Personalit y Traits Affect Perfor-
mance, Communication, Teamwork , and Leadership (Austin,
TX: Bard Press, 2001); Gerald Matthews, Personality Traits
(New York: Cambridge Universit y Press, 2010); John P.
Villanueva, Personality Traits: Classifications, Effects, and
Changes (New York: Nova Science Publishers, 2011).
22
Fred C. Lunenburg and Lynn Columba, "The 16PF as
a Predictor of Principal Performance: An Integration of
Quantitative and Qualitative Research Methods," Education,
113 (1992): 68-73.
 PARTII · Administrative Processes
personality model, as well as the meta-analyses of Bass
and Yuki. The purpose of the study was to examine
the validity of the Sixteen Personality Factor Qu estion-
naire (16PF) as a predictor of principal performance .
One hundred seventy-nine elementary and secondary
school principals from two large urban school districts
were administered the 16PF. Four independent criteria
were used to measure principal effectiveness: supervi-
sor's ratings, paired comparison ratings, peer nomina-
tion ratings, and teacher ratings, resulting in an overall
effectiveness score. The results of the study revealed
that Factors E (dominant), M (imaginative), Q2 (self-
sufficient), and A (warm) were consistent predictors of
superior performance.
Factor E characterizes individuals as assertive, self-
confident, and independent. Factor M individuals prefer
to deal with dynamic, essential matters rather than with
superfluous, marginal issues. Moreover, persons high in
this factor are more open to interaction with those differ-
ent from themselves, not necessarily out of friendliness
but because of curiosity coupled with self-confidence,
which reduces fear and suspicion of th e unfamiliar .
Factor Q2 characterizes individuals who prefer their
own decisions, are self-sufficient, and show resourceful-
ness. And finally, those individuals high in Factor A are
good-natured, easygoing, emotionally expressive, ready
to cooperate, attentive to people, softhearted, kindl y,
and adaptable. 23 These personality traits appear to fit
the demands of an urban principal to deal with a diverse
school population in a collaborative manner.
Emotional Intelligence
Recent studies are indicating that another trait that
may indicate effective leadership is emotional intelli-
gence (El). Building on Howard Gardner's concept of
multiple intelligences,24 Daniel Goleman and colleagues
criticize the traditional model of intelligence (IQ) for
being too narrow, thus failing to consider interp ersonal
competence. Goleman's broader regime include s abili-
ties such as being able to motivate oneself, to persi st
in the face of difficulties, to control impulse and delay
2
3Robert R. Cattell, Harold Eber, and Michael Tatsuoka ,
Handbook for the Sixteen Persona lity Questionnaire (l 6PF)
(Champaign, IL: Institute for Personality and Ability Testing,
1986).
24 Howard
Gardner, Frames of Mind: The Th eory of Multiple
Int elligences (New York: Basic Books, 2005); Gardner, Multiple
Int elligences: New Horizons (New York: Basic Books, 2007).
CHAPTER5 · Leadership
gratification, to keep distress from interfering with the
Table 5-3 Leadership Skills : Rate Yourself
ability to think, and to empathize with others. 25
Research conducted by Daniel Goleman and col- The best leaders hove strengths in at least a holf.<:Jozenkey emotional-intelligence competencies out of 20 or so. To see how you
leagues is bringing scientific data to the question of rote on some of these abilities, assess how the statements below apply to you . While getting a precise profile of your strengths
leadership . They have been tracking the science of out- and weaknesses requires a more rigorous assessment, this quiz can give you a rough roting. More important, we hope it will get
you thinking about how well you use leadership skills-and how you might get better at it.
standing performance for the last three decades. In
order to identify the essential ingredients of outstand- Statement Seldom Occasionally Often Frequently
ing leadership, the y reviewed data ranging from neu-
1. I am aware of what I am feeling. D D
rology to measures of the emotional climate that the D D
2. I know my strengths and weaknesses. D D
leader creates. Hundred s of studies in organizations of D D
3. I deal calmly with stress. D
all kinds-from small family businesses to the largest D D D
companies, from religious groups to schools and hos- 4. I believe the future will be better than the past. D D D D
pitals-have yielded a dozen or so abilities that distin- 5. I deal with changes easily. D D D D
guish the best leaders. (See Table 5-3 to rate yourself 6. I set measurable goals when I have a project. D D D D
on some of these essentials of leadership .) 7. Others soy I understand and am sensitive to them . D D D D
Just what are the essentials of leadership? Goleman 's 8. Others soy I resolve conflicts. D D D D
work and that of hundreds of other researchers 9. Others say I build and maintain relationships . D D D D
make clear that what sets beloved leaders apart from 10. Others say I inspire them . D D D D
those we hate is excellence at things like "motivating 11. Others say I am a team player. D D D D
power ," "empathy," "integrity, " and "intuitive ability." 12. Others say I helped to develop their ab ilities. D D D D
These abilities fall within the domain of emotional
intelligence-an adeptness at managing ourselves and Total the number of checks in each column :
our interactions with others-not school smarts. For Multiply this number by: Xl x2 X3 X4
instance, why do Phil Jackson, Oprah Winfrey, the To get your score, add these four numbers: + + +
Dalai Lama, and Colin Powell have what it takes to be
Interpretation:
effective leaders? Phil Jackson, LA Lakers coach, win- Total:__
ner of eleven NBA championships, has "motivating 36+: An overall score of 36 or higher suggests you are using key leadership abilities well-but ask a coworker or partner tor his
power." His skill in bringing out the best from his play- opinions, to be more certain. 30-35: Suggests some strengths but also some underused leadership abilities. 29 or lea: Suggests
unused leadership abilities and room for improvement .
ers helps to make the team a winner. Oprah Winfrey
Leaders are unique, and they can show their talent in different ways. To further explore your leadership strengths, you might ask
has "empathy." Her capacity to listen, to relate, and to people whose opinions you value: 'When you have seen me do really well as a leader. which of these abilities am I using?· If a
communicate the pain and resolve of millions has given number of people tell you that you use the same quality when doing well. you have likely identified a leadership strength that
her enormous authority. The Dala i Lama has "integrity." should be appreciated and nurtured.
His consistent stance of toleranc e, nonviolence, and
humility has made him a great moral leader and a voice Source : Daniel Goleman . ·could You Be a Leader ?" Sunday Star Ledger . Parade Magazine. June 16. 2002. p . 5.
of con science. Former Secretary of State Colin Powell
has "intuitive ability." His ability to connect with others prefrontal cortex-the brain's executive center, just According to Goleman and colleagues, the aptitudes
makes him a superior diplomat. behind the forehead. 26 of leadership, unlike academic or technical skills, are
According to Daniel Goleman and colleagues, new According to Goleman and colleagues, this may learned in life. That's good news for all of us. If you
findings in brain science reveal that this kind of intelli- explain the fact th at IQ and emotional intelligence are are weak in leadership, you can get better at virtually
gence uses different parts of the brain than does the aca- surprisingly independent . Of course, to be a great leader, any point in life with the right effort. But it takes mo-
demic kind. Cognitive abilities such as verbal fluency or you need enough intelligence to understand the issues at tivation, a clear idea of what you need to improve, and
mathematics skills reside in the neocortex, the wrinkled hand, but you need not be supersmart. By the same token , con.sistent practice . For example, good leaders are ex-
topmost layers, which are the most recent evolutionary people who are intellectually gifted can be disasters as cellent listeners. Let's assume that you need to become
addition to the human brain. But emotional intelligence leaders. Such situations are all too common in organiza- a better listener. Perhaps you cut people off and take
relies largely on the ancient emotional centers deep tions everywhere. It happens when people are promoted
over the conversation without hearing them out. The
in the midbrain between the ears, with links to the for the wrong set of skills: IQ abilities rather than the first step: become aware of the moments you do this
emotional intelligence abilities that good leaders display. and stop yourself. Instead, let the other people speak
their minds. Ask questions to be sure you understand
25 26
Daniel Goleman, Richar d Boyzatzis, and Annie McKee, Ibid ; See also, Fred C. Lunenburg, The Fitness Movement: their viewpoints. Then-and only then-give your
Primal Leadership: Realizing the Power of Emot iona l Int el- Exercise, Nutrition, and the Brain (New York: Harmony own opinion. With practice, you can become a better
ligence (Boston: Harvard University Press, 2002). Books, in Press). listener.
 PARTII · Administrative Processes
Another skill that good leaders possess is helping oth-
ers stay in a positive emotional state. Research shows
that leaders who achieve the best results get people to
laugh three times more often than do mediocre leaders.27
Laughter signals that people are not caught up in, say, an-
ger or fear, but rather are relaxed and enjoying what they
do-and so they are more likely to be creative, focused,
and productive. In sum, leaders are made, not born.
Behavior Theories
Another way of understanding leadership is to compare
the behaviors of effective and ineffective leaders to see
how successful leaders behave. The focus shifts from try-
ing to determine what effective leaders are to trying to
determine what effective leaders do. The issues to be ex-
plored include: in what way do leaders lead? How hard do
leaders push their subordinates? How much do they listen
and use their subordinates' ideas? The dichotomy between
the trait and behavioral approach is not as sharp a divi-
sion as one might suspect. A leader's personal traits and
characteristics probably influence his leadership behavior
or style. For example, an individual who feels adequate
and feels comfortable with people will ordinarily adopt a
people-oriented behavior style. On the contrary, a person
who feels inadequate and feels threatened by people will
probably adopt a production-oriented behavior style.
Three widely known studies of classic behavioral
theories of leadership were conducted at the Univer-
sity of Iowa, Ohio State University, and the University
of Michigan. Each theory is closely identified with the
sponsoring univer sity. We examine these theories by
describing and classifying the leader behavior constructs
developed in each. Then we examine some of the subse-
quent research associated with each theory; that is, the
effects of leader behaviors on organizational outcome s
such as job satisfaction, morale, and productivity.
The Iowa Studies: Authoritarian, Democratic,
and Laissez-Faire Leadership
An early attempt to classify and study the effects of
different styles of leader behavior on the group was
conducted at the University of lowa. 28 In a series of
2 7Goleman, Boyzatzis, and McKee, Primal Leadership: Realizing
the Power of Emotional Intelligence.
28Kurt Lewin, Ronald Lippitt, and Robert K. White, "Patterns
of Aggressive Behavior in Experimentally Created ' Social
Climates,"' Journal of Social Psychology, 10 (1939): 271-299 .
CHAPTER5 · Leadership
experiments, the Iowa researchers manipulated three Table 5-4 Differences in Leader Behavior Style as Identified by the Iowa Researchers
leadership styles to determine their effects on the atti-
tudes and productivity of subordinates . Leadership was Behavior Authoritarian Democratic Laissez.Faire
classified into three different types, according to the Policy determination Solely by leader By group's decision No policy-
leader's style of handling several decision-making situa- comple1efreedom
tions during the experiments: for group or
individualdecision
Authoritarian Leadership. Leaders were very direc- Establishment
of job Solelyby leader Leadersuggests- Up to 1hdividual
techniquesand activities group chooses
tive and allowed no participation in decisions. They
structured the complete work situation for their sub- Planning Solelyby leader Group receives No sys1ematic
ordinates. Leaders took full authority and assumed full sufficientinformation planning
responsibility from initiation to task completion .
to obtain perspective
needed to plan
Democratic Leadership. Leaders encouraged group Establishment of division Dictated by leader Leftto group decision Leader uninvolved
of labor and job
discussion and decision making . Subordinates were assignments
informed about conditions affecting their jobs and
Evaluation Leader personalin Evaluation against No approiscil-
encouraged to express their ideas and make suggestions. praiseand criticism objectivestandards spontaneous
evaluation
Laissez-Faire Leadership. Leaders gave complete by other group
freedom to the group and left it up to subordinates to members
make individual decisions on their own . Essentially,
leaders provided no leadership. Source :,l\~apted from Kurt Lewin.Ronald Lippitt.and Robert K.White, ' Patterns of Aggressive Behavior in Experimentally Created 'Social
Climates. Journal of Social Psychology , 10(1939): 271-299 . Copyright 1939 by Heldref Publications . Used by permission of the Helen Dwight
Table 5-4 describes the three leadership styles. The Reid Educational Foundation.
table summarizes typical behaviors exhibited by leaders
using the three different leadership styles in a variety of
dimensions of leadi;rship behavior .
5. Productivity was slightly higher under the authori- The Ohio State Studies: Initiating
Some of the results of the Iowa leadership studies
tarian leader than under the democratic one, but it Structure and Consideration
include the following: 29
was lowest under the laissez-faire leader.
The research at Ohio State University aimed to iden-
1. Of the three styles of leadership, subordinates tify leader behaviors that were important for the attain-
preferred the democratic style the best, which Later studies done at the University of Michigan,
ment of group and organizational goals. Specifically,
makes intuitive sense. The general trend today however, indicate a sharp increase in productivity
researchers sought to answer the following questions:
is toward wider use of participatory management initially under authoritarian leadership, but this was
What types of behavior do leaders display? What effect
practices because they are consistent with the followed by drastic decreases in productivity over the
do these leader behaviors have on work group perfor-
supportive and collegial models of modern long run for authoritarian-led groups; and these groups
mance and satisfaction?
ultimately reached levels well below democratically led
organization. During these studies, researchers from the disciplines
groups in productivity. 30
2. Subordinates preferred the laissez-faire leadership of psychology , sociology, and economics developed
style over the authoritarian one. For subordinates, and used the Leader Behavior Description Question-
Implications for Practice The Iowa studies were
even chaos was preferable to rigidity. naire (LBDQ) to study leadership in different types of
important in that they helped focus attention on the
groups and situations. 31 Studies were made of Air Force
3. Authoritarian leaders elicited either aggressive or investigation of leadership behavior. Furthermore,
commanders and members of bomber crews; officers,
apathetic behavior that was deemed to be reactions they provided a useful basis for describing and classi-
noncommissioned personnel, and civilian adminis -
to the frustration caused by the authoritarian fying alternative leader behavior styles. In fact, today
trators in the Department of the Navy; executives of
leader. the three styles identified by the Iowa researchers more
regional cooperatives; manufacturing supervisors;
than seventy years ago are commonplace in the litera-
4. Apathetic behavior changed to aggressive behavior leaders of various student and civilian groups; and
ture and in parlance among practitioners in the field of
when the leadership style changed from authoritar- teachers, principals, and school superintendents.
educational administration.
ian to laissez-faire; the laissez-faire leader produced
the greatest amount of aggressive behavior.
30 David G. Bowers, Systems of Or ganization: Management 31 Ralph M. Stogdill and Alvin E. Coon s (eds.), Leader Behavior:
of th e Human R esour ce (Ann Arbor : University of Michigan It s Descripti on and M easurem ent (Columbus: Bureau of
29 Ibid . Press, 1977). Business Research, Ohio State University, 1957).
 PARTII · Administrative
Group responses to the LBDQ were then subjected to
factor analysis, a mathematical techniqu e that permits
identification of a smaller set of common dimensions
undergirding a large set of questionnaire responses.
From the factor analysis came two dimensions that
characterized the behavior of leaders in the numerous
groups and situations investigated: initiating structure
and consideration.
Initiating Structure Initiating structure refers to the
extent to which a leader focuses directly on organiza-
tional performance goals, organizes and defines tasks,
assigns work, establishes channels of communication,
delineates relationships with subordinates, and evalu-
ates work group performance. Leaders who initiate
structure assign staff members to particular tasks, main-
tain definite standards of performance, emphasize meet-
ing deadlines, encourage the use of uniform procedures,
let staff members know what is expected of them, and
see to it that staff members are working up to capacity.
Consideration Consideration refers to the extent to
which a leader exhibits trust, respect, warmth , support,
and concern for the welfare of subordinates. Leaders
who manifest consideration listen to staff members'
ideas, are friendly and approachable, treat all staff
members as equals, and frequently use employee ideas.
A high consideration score indicates psychological
closeness between leader and subordinate; a low con -
sideration score indicates a more psychologically dis-
tant and impersonal approach on the part of the leader.
The result was a two-dimensional leadership model.
These dimensions are seen as being independent, thus
resulting in four leadership behaviors as depicted in
Figure 5-1.
Implications for Practice Over the years, the useful-
ness of the high initiating structure/high consideration
style has been tested many times. 32 Overall, results have
been mixed. There has been very little research about
these leader behaviors until recently. Findings from
a meta-analysis of 130 studies involving more than
20,000 participants indicated that initiating structure
and consideration had a moderately strong, significant
relationship with leadership outcomes. For example,
consideration had a strong positive relationship with
32Edwin A. Fleishman, "Con sideration and Structure: Another
Look at Their Role in Leader ship Research ," in F. Danser eau
and F.J. Yammarino (ed s. ), Leadership : The Multile vel
Approach es (Stamford, CT: JAi Press, 1998), pp. 51-60 .
Processes
CHAPTER5 · Leadership
High EXEMPLARYEDUCATIONALADMINISTRATORS
IN ACTION
WW High CRAIG L. ELLIOTT,Ed. D., Superintendent, Maize
Structure Structure Unified School District, Kansas.
High High Words of Advice: There are two words that are
Consideration Consideration very important to our profession, and to the super-
intendency: patience and compassion. Both words
III II are necessary for survival as a superintendent. As I
IV I have watched and mentored building principals that
move into central office positions, I have observed that
WW High
Structure Structure
the aspect of the job they have the most difficult time
with is understanding that many decisions do not
WW WW need to be made quickly. As a building principal, one
Consideration Consideration often needs to make quick decisions. The fear is being
known as a leader who cannot make a decision. As a
Low central office administrator, we often are not the ones
Low--------------- High to be making the decision in the first place; rather, we
Initiating Structure should facilitate the process of decision making. And
FIGURE5-1 we should do this by asking questions.
When moving into central office work, one must
Ohio State Leadership Grid adjust to a larger environment (arena may be the more
fitting term, because we all know that we have many
perceived leader effectiveness, employee motivation,
and employee job satisfaction. Initiating structure had
a strong positive relationship with employee motiva-
tion and moderate positive relationships with perceived called production-centered leadership and employee-
leader effectiveness, employee job satisfaction, and centered leadership.
overall unit performance. 33 Production-centered leader behavior is very similar
to high initiating structure leader behavior. The
production-centered leader emphasizes employee tasks
and the methods used to accomplish them. Leaders who
The Michigan Studies: Production Centered
are production centered set tight work standards, orga-
and Employee Centered
nize tasks carefully, prescribe work methods to be fol-
Around the time that the Ohio State leadership studies lowed , and closely supervise their subordinates' work .
were being conducted, a series of leadership stud- Employee -centered leader behavior is very similar
ies were in progress at the University of Michigan's to high consideration leader behavior. An employee-
Institute for Social Research. The Michigan researchers centered leader emphasizes the employee's personal
used an approach to identify leaders who were rated as needs and the development of interpersonal relation-
either effective or ineffective and then studied the be- ships . Leaders who are employee centered tend to be
havior of these leaders in an attempt to develop con- supportive of their subordinates, use group rather than
sistent patterns of behavior that differentiated effective individual decision making, encourage subordinates to
from ineffective leaders.
set and achieve high performance goals, and endeavor
The Michigan studies identified two distinct leadership to treat subordinates in a sensitive, considerate way.
behaviors that were very similar to the initiating structure
and consideration dimensions which evolved from the Implications for Practice Hundreds of studies in a
Ohio State studies. The two dimensions identified were
wide variety of business, hospital, government, and other
organizations were conducted. Thousands of employees,
33Timothy A. Judge, Robert F. Piccolo, and Richard Ilies, "The performing tasks ranging from unskilled to highly pro-
Forgotten Ones? The Validity of Consideration and Initiating fessional and scientific, completed a variety of question-
Structure in Leadership Research, " Journal of Applied Psy- naires developed by the Michigan researchers. The initial
chology, 89 (2004) : 36-51. research indicated that the most productive work groups
publics to please). I have witnessed all too often the
quicker a decision, the sooner the decision has to be
"adjusted." Many times, inexperienced central of-
fice administrators have to correct a situation because
they were making their decision as an administrator
responsible •fur a select group of children and adults,
not as an administrator whose decision affects all of
the district's·children and adults.
Compassion, I've found', is necessary in understand-
ing others. Teaching requires a deep understanding of
why certain things are not understood by select indi-
viduals. Our natural instinct as educators is to try to
help. Compassion means that you have put yourself in
the other person's shoes, whether that be an employee,
parent, or student. In so doing, you are unclerstanding
all points of view and, therefore, have an opportunity
to look at the big picture rather than have a narrow
focus. Knowing when to use patience and how to use
compassion is the key to an effective and successful
administration.
tended to have leaders who were employee centered
rather than production centered. 34 Subsequent research,
however, concluded that leaders with the best production
records were both production centered and employee
centered. 35 However, the Michigan research findings
have not been totally consistent. In comparison, the Ohio
State leadership studies appear to have become more fa-
mous, at least in the educational setting, because of the
number of studies that were generated by the initiating
structure and consideration dimensions. And because
many of these studies were done in school organizations.
Leadership Grid: A Contemporary Extension
Robert Blake and Jane Mouton developed the Leader-
ship Grid (formerly the Managerial Grid) as a tool for
identifying a leader's style. 36 They define two dimensions
34Rensis Likert , The Human Organization : Its Management
and Value (New York: McGraw -Hill , 196 7 ); Likert , New
Patterns of Managem ent (New York: Garland, 1987).
35Bowers, Systems of Organization : Management of Human
Resource.
36Robert R. Blake and Jane S. Mouton, The Managerial Grid:
Leadership Styles for Achieving Produ ction Through People
(Houston: Gulf, 1994) .
 PART
II · AdministrativeProcesses

I CHAPTER
5 · Leadership 111

l
1, Leader's Motivational Situational Favorableness Outcome
9 Coun ry Club Manage nt
System
Thoug tful-atte~tion to-n*ed Leader-Member Relations
FIGURE 5-3
8 of pco 1, rms,ti,fymg Leadership Style 1------ Task Structure Effectiveness
relatio ships I ds to a
omfo hle,fri ndly-- - - Leader's Position Power Major Variables in Fiedler's Contingency
organi ation a osphere Theory
7 and w rk temp .
1
; --! ---
..
-a 6
the like, which enable the targeted person to learn from Fiedler's Contingency Theory
....
0
~ --- -
others how they experience his or her leadership, that
is, as 1,9-oriented, 9,1-oriented, 9,9-oriented, and so Fred Fiedler and his associates have spent more than
,S 5 on. Therefore, the Grid is used to help people analyze two decades developing and refining a contingency
e..
... ---+--
different possibilities and likely results to be achieved theory of leadership. 37 According to the theory, the
=
0 by each of the Grid styles. As an organizational devel- effectiveness of a leader in achieving high group perfor-
u 4
opment technique, trainers aim to transform the leader mance is contingent on the leader's motivational system
FIGURE 5-2 in the organization to lead in the "one best way," which and the degree to which the leader controls and influ-
3 according to Blake and Mouton's Grid is the (9,9) team ences the situation. The three situational factors include
The Leadership Grid®Figure leader-member relations, task structure, and the leader's
management style. The team management approach is
Source: The Leadership Grid®figure, position power. Figure 5-3 depicts the interrelationship
Paternalism Figure and Opportunism, from one that combines optimal concern for production and
2 among these variables. We discuss the three components
Leadership Dilemmas-Grid Solutions, by optimal concern for people.
Robert R.Blake and Anne Adams Mccanse of Fiedler's theory-leadership style, situational favor-
(formerly the Managerial Grid by Robert ableness, and the contingency model-and the empiri-
R.Blake and Jane S. Mouton). Houston: cal evidence concerning the validity of the theory.
Low
Gulf Publishing Company, P.29. Copyright© Contingency Theories
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Low High 1991 by Scientific Methods, Inc. Repro- Efforts to discover the one best set of leader traits and Leadership Style Fiedler developed a unique tech-
duced by permission of the owners. nique to measure leadership style. Measurement is
Concern for Production the one best set of leader behaviors in all situations have
failed. Contemporary researchers and school adminis- obtained from scores on the least preferred co-worker
of leader style as concern for production and concern for • 1,1 Impoverished Management. Leaders do the trators are more likely to believe that the practice of (LPC) scale. Table 5-5 presents an example of an LPC
people, which essentially mirrors the Ohio State studies' minimu~ required to remain employed in the leadership is too complex to be represented by a single scale. The scale usually contains twenty-f,our pairs of
dimensions of initiating structure and consideration. organization. set of traits or behaviors. Instead, the idea that effective adjectives, written as a bipolar list, each of which could
The Grid portrays five key leadership styles. Concern • 5,5 Organization Man Management. Leaders leadership behavior is "contingent" on the situation is be used to describe a person. The leader completing the
for production is rated on a 1 to 9 scale on the horizon- concentrate on conforming to the status quo and more prevalent today. LPC scale is asked to describe the person with whom
tal axis, while concern for people is rated similarly on maintaining middle-of-the-road or "go-along-to-get- The contingency approach to leadership is consid- he worked least well in accomplishing some task, by
the vertical axis (see Figure 5-2). The Grid identifies a along" assumptions. erably more complex than either the trait or the be- placing Xs at the appropriate points between each of
range of leader orientations based on the various ways havioral approach. According to contingency theory, the adjective pairs. The most positive response for each
• 9,9 Team Management. Leaders use a goal-centered pair of adjectives is assigned a score of 8 and the least
in which task-oriented and people-oriented styles can effective leadership depends on the interaction of the
approach to gain higq-quantity and high-quality positive response a score of 1. Summing all item scores
interact with each other. leader's personal traits, the leader's behavior, and fac-
results through broad involvement of group members: on the instrument gives a leader's LPC score. A high
tors in the leadership situation. At the same time, the
participation, commitment, and conflict resolution. score indicates that the leader views the least preferred
Leadership Styles Although there are eighty-one contingency approach is based on the proposition that
possible styles in the Grid, the five styles noted in effective leadership cannot be explained by any one fac- co-worker in relatively favorable terms. A low score
Figure 5-2 and discussed below are treated as bench- Implications for Practice The Leadership Grid can tor. Instead, it proposes that all factors must be consid- means that the least preferred co-worker is described in
marks in the theory. Blake and Mouton view leaders as be distinguished from the Ohio State studies discussed ered in the context of the situation in which the leader a very negative, rejecting manner.
being capable of selecting from among them. earlier. The Ohio State studies are fundamentally must lead. We discuss two contingency theories of lead- How can the leader's LPC score be interpreted?
descriptive and nonevaluative, whereas the Grid is nor- ership that have received a great deal of attention. The Fiedler interprets a leader's LPC score to be a personal-
• 9,1 Authority-Obedience. Leaders concentrate on mative and prescriptive. Specifically, according to the questions we ask regarding contingency leadership shift ity trait that reflects the leader's motivational system or
maximizing production through the use of power, Grid, teain management (9,9) is the best style of leader from: "Is authoritarian, initiating structure, production- behavioral preferences. High LPC leaders (those who
authority, and control. behavior. This is the basis on which the grid has been centered leadership more effective than democratic, con-
• 1,9 Country Club Management. Leaders place used for leadership training in an organization's profes- sideration, employee-centered leadership?" to a different
primary emphasis on good feelings among colleagues sional development program. Blake and Mouton have question: "In what situations will production-centered 37
Fred E. Fiedler and Martin M. Chemers, Improving
and subordinates even if production suffers as a developed instruments that are designed to stimulate leadership be effective, and under what set of circum- Leadership Effectiveness: The Leader Match Concept, 2nd ed.
result. feedback from colleagues, associates, subordinates, and stances will employee-centered leadership be effective?" (New York: Wiley, 1984).
 PART11
· · Administrative Processes
Table 5-5 Sample of Items from the LPC Scale
Pleasant
8 7 6 5
Friendly
8 7 6 5
Rejecting
8 7 6 5
Tense
8 7 6 5
Distant
7 2
8 6 5 4
Cold
8 7 6 5
Supportive
8 7 6 5
Boring
8 7 6 5
Source: Adapted from Fred E. Fiedler and Martin M. Chemers . Improving Leadership Effec tiveness: The Leader Match Concept , 2nd ed ..
© 1984. p . 19. Used by permission of John Wiley & Sons. Inc., New York.
perceive their least preferred co-workers positively)
have as their basic goal the desire to maintain close
interpersonal relationships with subordinates and be-
have in a considerate and supportive manner toward
them . If the leader reaches this goal, he will be able to
attain such secondary goals as status and esteem. In re-
turn, these leaders want their subordinates to admire
and recognize them. Low LPC leaders have a different
motivational structure: Task accomplishment is their
primary goal. Needs such as esteem and status are
fulfilled through the accomplishment of tasks, not di-
rectly through relationships with subordinates. Hence,
a high LPC score indicates a relationship -motivated
(employee-centered) leader whose interpersonal rela -
tionship needs have first priority, and a low LPC score
indicate s a task-motivated (production-centered) leader
whose task achievement needs have first priority .
Situational Favorableness After classifying leaders
according to their LPC scores, Fiedler set out to dis-
cover what type of leader is most effective. The basic
premise of his contingency theory is that in some situ-
ations high LPC (relationship-motivated) leaders will
be more effective, whereas other circumstances make it
more likely that low LPC (task-motivated) leaders will
be most effective. Fiedler concludes therefore that the
relationship between leadership style and effectiveness
depends on several factor s in the situation. He identified
Scoring
Unpleasant
4 3 2 FIGURE 5-4
Unfriendly
4 3 2 Fiedler 's Contingency Model
Accepting
4 3 2 · · A Theory of Leadership Effectiveness.
Relaxed
4 3 2
Close
3
Worm
4 3 2 performance measures enable the leader to set perfor-
Hostile
4 3 2 (for example, "Type ten error-free manuscript pages per
Interesting
4 3 2 tured, the leader may be in a poor position to evaluate
three : leader-member relations, task structure, and
position power.
Leader-member relations refer to the quality of the
relationship between the leader and the group. The de-
gree of confidence, trust, and respect subordinates have
in the leader assesses it. Good or bad classifies leader-
member relations. The assumption is that if subordi-
nates respect and trust the leader, it will be easier for
the leader to exercise influence in accomplishing tasks .
For example, if subordinates are willing to follow a
leader because of her referent power, they are follow-
ing the leader because of personality, trustworthiness,
and so on. On the other hand, when the relationship
between leader and subordinates is not good, the leader
may have to resort to special favors (reward power) to
get good performance from subordinates.
Task structure refer s to the nature of the sub-
ordinate's task-whether it is routine (structured) or
complex (unstructured). Task structure can be opera-
tionally defined by (1) the extent of goal clarity (i.e.,
the degree to which the task requirements are known
by subordinates), (2) the multiplicity of goal paths (i.e.,
whether there are many or few procedures for solving
the problem), (3) the extent of decision verifiability
(i.e., whether performance can be easily evaluated), and
(4) the solution specificity (i.e., whether there are one
or many correct solutions). When the task to be per-
formed is highly structured, the leader should be able
CHAPTER5 · Leadership
I..Rader Member
Good
Relations
Task Structure Structured Unstructured Structured
Position Power Strong Weak Strong Weak Strong Weak Strong
Situati ons I II Ill IV V VI
Favorable ____________
to exert considerable influence on subordinates . Clear
goals, clear procedures to achieve goals, and objective
mance standards and hold subordinates accountable
hour") . On the other hand, when the task is unstruc-
subordinate performance because the goals are unclear,
there are multiple paths to achieve them, and the leader
may possess no more knowledge about the task than
the subordinates (for example, "Devise a plan to im-
prove the quality of life in our school " ).
Position power refers to the extent to which the
leader possesses the ability to influence the behavior of
subordinates through legitimate, reward, and coercive
powers. Examples are the power to hire and fire, to give
pay raises and promotions, and to direct subordinates
to task completion. The more position power held by
the leader, the more favorable the leadership situation .
In general, committee chairpersons and leaders in vol-
untary organizations have weak position power. School
boards, superintendents, and principals of school orga-
nizations have strong position power.
Contingency Model Leader-member relations, task
structure, and position power determine the situational
favorableness for the leader. To combine these factors in
the simplest way, Fiedler simply split each into two cat-
egories and thus produced eight possible combinations
(see Figure 5-4). The eight situations vary in terms of
their overall favorableness for the exercise of leader-
ship. As Figure 5-4 shows, the most favorable situation
(greater leader influence) is one in which leader-member
relations are good, the task is highly structured, and the
leader has strong position power. The least favorable
situation (least leader influence) is one in which leader-
member relations are poor, tasks are unstructured, and
leader position power is weak.
Fiedler hypothesized that the favorableness of the sit-
uation with the leadership style determines effectiveness.
Poor
Unstructured
Weak
VII VIII
Source : Aclapted from Fred E. Fiedler,
..,.. Unfavorable
© 1967, p . 37. Used by permission .
He reviewed studies conducted in over 800 groups to
investigate which type of leader was most effective in
each situation. 38 Among the groups studied were Air
Force bomber crews, combat tank crews, basketball
teams, fraternity members, surveying teams, open-
hearth steel employees, form-supply service employees,
and educational administrators. The general conclusion
reached, as shown in Figure 5-5, is that task-motivated
leaders were most effective in extreme situations where
the leader either had a great deal of influence or very
little power and influence. Relationship-motivated (high
LPC) leaders were most effective where the leader had
moderate power and influence.
Why is the task-motivated leader successful in very
favorable situations? Fiedler provided the following
explanation:
In the very favorable condition s in which the leader has
power, informal backing, and a relatively well-structured
task, the group is ready to be directed and the group
expects to be told what to do. Consider the captain of
an airliner in its final landing approach. We would
hardly want him to turn to his crew for a discussion
on how to land. 39
To explain why the task-motivated leader is success-
ful in a highly unfavorable situation, Fiedler cites the
following example:
... [T]he disliked chairman of a volunteer committe e .. .
is asked to plan the office picnic on a beautiful Sunday. If
the leader asks too many questions about what the group
ought to do or how he should proceed, he is likely to be
told that "we ought to go home."40
As Figure 5-5 shows, the relationship-motivated
(high LPC) leader is effective in the intermediate range
38
Fred E. Fiedler, A The ory of Leadership Effectiveness (New
York: McGraw-Hill, 1967).
39
Ibid. p. 147.
40Ibid.
 High
PARTII · Administrative Processes

...-----,------r-------,-----,------,:-------,----,------,
r
I
CHAPTER5 · Leadership

attempts to explain the impact of leadership behavior behavior as either an immediate source of satisfaction
-
on subordinate motivation, satisfaction, effort, and or as instrumental to future satisfaction. 42 Subordinate
performance as moderated by situational factors of the characteristics are seen to partially determine the extent
subordinates and the work environment. House's gen- to which subordinates perceive a leader's behavior as
Relationship-Motivated
eral model and each of its parts are examined in the acceptable and satisfying. House and Baetz identified
Leaders Perform Better following sections. three subordinate characteristics:
Ability. An important personal characteristic of subor,
Leader Behavior Four distinct types of leader behav-
dinates is,t:heir perception of their ability to perform
----!----!----
Task-Motivated
Leaders Perform
ior comprise House's path-goal model:
Directive Leadership. A directive leader lets subordinates
a task. For example, subordinates who feel they have
low task ability should appreciate directive leadership,
Better know what is expected of them, provides specific guid- whereas subordinates who feel quite capable of per-
ance concerning what is to be done and how to do it, forming the task will find directive leadership unneces-
sets performance standards, requests that subordinates sary and perhaps irritating.
follow standard rules and regulations, schedules and Locus of Control. Locus of control refers to the
coordinates work, and explains his role as leader of the degree to which an individual sees the environment as
Low 1--_:_--+-~2--+--..:.3:..__+---4~-+---5--+--6--+--7---lr---8---1 group. Directive leadership is similar to the Ohio State systematically responding to his behavior. 43 Individu-
LeaUer Member Good Good Good Good Poor Poor Poor Poor researchers' initiating structure.
Relations als with an internal locus of control believe outcomes
Supportive Leadership. A supportive leader is friendly, are a function of their own behavior. Individuals with
Task Structure Structured Unstructured Structured Unstructured
approachable, and concerned with the needs, status, an external locus of control believe outcomes are a
Leader Position Weak Strong Weak and well-being of subordinates. A supportive leader function of luck or chance. Research suggests that
Strong Weak Strong Weak Strong
Power treats subordinates as equals and frequently goes out "internals" are more satisfied with participative leader-
Favorable Moderate Unfavorable of his way to make the work environment more pleas- ship and "externals" are more satisfied with a directive
ant and enjoyable. This leadership style is similar to leadership style.44
--------Situational Favorableness---------
what the Ohio State researchers call consideration. Needs qnd Motives. The dominant needs, motives, and
FIGURE5-5
Participative Leadership. A participative leader con- personality characteristics of subordinates may influ-
Summary of Contingency Model Research sults with subordinates concerning work-related mat- ence their acceptance of and satisfaction with alterna-
Source: Adapted from Fred E. Fiedler and Martin M. Chemers. Leadership and Effective ters, solicits their opinions, and frequently attempts to tive leadership styles. For example, subordinates who
Management,© 1974, p. 80. Used by permission of Fred E. Fiedler. use subordinates' ideas in making decisions. have a high need for esteem and affiliation should be
Achievement-Oriented Leadership. An achievement- more satisfied with a supportive leader. Those with a
oriented leader sets challenging goals for subordinates, high need for security will be more satisfied with a direc-
of favorableness (octants 4, 5, 6, and 7). An example of Path-Goal Theory emphasizes excellence in performance, and shows confi- tive leader. Furthermore, subordinates with a high need
such situations is the typical university committee staffed dence in subordinates' ability to achieve high standards for autonomy, responsibility, and self-actualization will
Another widely known contingency theory of leader- probably be more motivated by a participative leader,
by professionals. In these situations, the leader may not ship is the path-goal theory of leadership effectiveness. of performance.
be completely accepted by the group, the task may be and those who are high-need achievers should be more
Path-goal theory is based on the expectancy theory of Numerous research studies in path-goal theory sug- satisfied with achievement-oriented leaders.
ambiguous, and little power may be vested in the leader. motivation and emphasizes the leader's effect on subor-
Under such circumstances, Fiedler's theory predicts that gest that the same leader can manifest these four styles
dinates' goals and the paths to achieve the goals. Lead- of leadership in various situations. Unlike Fiedler's con- With respect to the second situational factor, environ-
relationship-motivated leaders will be most effective. ers have influence over subordinates' ability to reach mental forces, path-goal theory states: leadership behav-
tingency model, which considers leadership behavior as
goals, the rewards associated with reaching goals, and unidimensional, path-goal theory views leadership be- ior will be motivational to the extent that (1) it makes
Implications for Practice Fiedler considers leader-
the importance of the goals. havior as relatively adaptable.
ship styles to be relatively fixed or enduring. That is,
The modern development of path-goal theory is usu-
a leader cannot alter her leadership style according to 42
ally attributed to Martin Evans and to Robert House Situational Factors Each type of leader behavior Robert House and Mary L. Baetz, "Leadership: Some
the situation. A practical implication of Fiedler's theory Empirical Generalizations and New Research Directions,"
and his colleagues. 41 Essentially, the path-goal theory works well in some situations but not in others. Two
would be for the leader to be assigned to situations in Research in Organizational Behavior, vol. 12 (Greenwich, CT:
which they will be more effective. A second alternative situational factors moderate the relationship between JAI Press, 1990).
would be for the leader to make the situation more leader behavior and subordinate outcomes. The two 43].B. Rotter, "Generalized Expectancies for Internal versus
favorable. This can be accomplished by (a) improving situational variables are subordinate characteristics and External Control of Reinforcement," Psychological Mono-
41 MartinG. Evans, "The Effects of Supervisory Behavior on
relationships with organization members, (b) clarify- environmental forces. graphs, 80 (1966), whole issue.
the Path-Goal Relationship," Organizational Behavior and
ing task structure by providing more guidelines and in- Human Performance, 5 (1970): 277-298; Robert J. House, With respect to subordinate characteristics, the the- 44 Avis
L. Johnson, Fred Luthans, and Harry W. Hennessey,
structions to organization members, and (c) requesting "A Path-Goal Theory of Leader Effectiveness," Administrative ory asserts that leadership behavior will be ac~eptable "The Role of Locus of Control in Leader Influence Behavior,"
more position power from the organization. Science Quarterly, 16 (1971): 321-339. to subordinates to the extent that subordinates see such Personnel Psychology, 37 (1984): 61-75.
 PARTII · AdministrativeProcesses
Causal Variables Moderator Variables
Leader Behavior Subordinate Characteristics
Directive Ability
Supportive Locus of Control
Participative Needs and Motives
Achievement Oriented Environmental Forces
The Task
Work Group
Authority System
satisfaction of subordinate needs contingent on effective
performance, and (2) it complements the environment of
subordinates by providing the coaching, guidance, sup-
port, and rewards that are necessary for effective perfor-
mance and that may otherwise be lacking in subordinates
or in their environment. 45 Environmental forces include
three broad aspects of situational factors: subordinates'
tasks, the primary work group, and the formal authority
system.
Tasks. An important environmental force that moder-
ates the effects of leader behavior on subordinate out-
comes is subordinates' tasks. Generally, researchers
have classified tasks as highly structured or highly un-
structured. Research has provided some evidence that
supportive and participative leadership is more likely
to increase subordinate satisfaction on highly struc-
tured tasks. This is because the tasks are routine and no
further direction is necessary. Subordinates should be
more satisfied with directive leadership on unstructured
tasks because directive behavior can help clarify an am-
biguous task. 46
Work Group. The characteristics of work groups may
also influence subordinate acceptance of a particular
leadership style. For example, the path-goal theory
asserts that "when goals and paths to desired goals
are apparent because of ... clear group norms ... ,
attempts by the leader to clarify paths and goals would
be redundant and would be seen by subordinates as an
imposition of unnecessarily close control." 47
Formal Authority System. The final environmental force
concerns such matters as (1) the degree bf emphasis on
rules, regulations, policies, and procedures governing
45 House and Baetz, "Leadership: Some Empirical Generaliza-
tions and New Research Directions."
46 House and Dessler, "The Path-Goal Theory of Leadership."
47 Ibid., pp. 29-62.
CHAPTER
5 · Leadership
Boss-Centered Subordinate-Centered
Outcome Variables Leadership Leadership
Satisfaction
Motivation
Effort Use of Authority
Performance by the Manager
FIGURE 5-6
Area of Freedom
for Subordinates
Relationship of Variables in the
Path-Goal Theory
the performance of tasks; (2) situations of high stress;
Manager Manager Manager Manager Manager Manager Manager
and (3) situations of great uncertainty. Some examples makes and '"sells" presents presents presents defines permits
follow: with tasks (e.g., typing manuscripts) that are announces decision ideas and tentative problem, limits and subordinates
self-evident due to mechanization, standards, and pro- decision invites decision gets asks to function
cedures, directive leadership may lead to subordinate questions subject suggestions, group to within
to change and makes make limits
dissatisfaction. Research suggests that directive and sup- decision decision defined by
portive leadership will increase subordinate satisfaction superior
in some stressful situations. In environments of uncer- FIGURE 5-7
tainty, leaders may initially use a participatory leader-
ship style to solicit ideas in reaching a decision but later Leadership Style Continuum
may resort to directive leadership once the final decision Source: Adapted from Robert Tannenbaum and Warren Schmidt, ·How to Choose a
Leadership Patern: Harvard Business Review, 51 (1973): 167. Copyright© 1973 by the
is made.
President and Fellows of Harvard College. Used by permission.
Figure 5-6 summarizes the path-goal theory of
leadership effectiveness. As the figure shows, leader be-
outcomes such as satisfaction and performance. School continuum that runs between boss-centered leadership
havior moderated by subordinate characteristits-and
administrators are advised to modify their leadership at one extreme and subordinate-cente,red leadership at
environmental forces results in subordinate motivation,
behaviors to fit these subordinate characteristics and the other. Between these extremes are five points repre-
satisfaction, effort, and performance.
environmental factors. senting various combinations of managerial authority
Implications for Practice Testing path-goal theory and subordinate freedom. Figure 5-7 depicts their con-
cept of a leadership style continuum.
has been difficult due to its complexity. The theory does Leadership Styles
correlate employee satisfaction with leadership, but its
impact on performance has not yet been confirmed. The classic leadershiP. studies (trait and behavioral ap- Leadership Behaviors The authors identify five typi-
Thus, the validity of the entire path-goal theory is yet proaches) and the contingency theories of leadership all cal patterns of leadership behavior from their model:
to be determined. 48 Nevertheless, the path-goal theory have direct implications for what style the leader uses
is an improvement over the trait and behavior theories in managing human resources. The term style is roughly 1. Telling. The leader identifies a problem, considers
for at least three reasons. First, the theory is an attempt equivalent to the manner in which the leader influences alternative solutions, chooses one of them, and then
to indicate which factors affect motivation to perform. subordinates. In the following sections, we present the tells subordinates what they are to do. They may
Second, the theory broadens the range of leadership most recent approaches that deal directly with style. be considered but do not participate directly in the
behaviors a leader can choose from. Third, the path- decision making. Coercion may or may not be used
goal theory introduces both subordinate characteristics Leadership Style Continuum or implied.
(i.e., ability, experience, and need for independence) 2. Selling. The leader makes the decision but tries to
Robert Tannenbaum and Warren Schmidt 49 elabo-
and environmental factors (task, work group, and au- persuade the group members to accept it. The leader
rated on two styles identified in the earlier trait and
thority system) when examining lea9er behavior and points out how she has considered organizational
behavioral studies of leadership. They conceive of a
goals and the interests of group members, and she
48John
states how the members will benefit from carrying
R. Villa,John P. Howell, & PeterW. Dorfman, "Prob-
out the decision.
lems :Vith Detecting Moderators in Le,adership Research Using 49 RobertTannenbaum and Warren Schmidt, "How to Choose
Moderated Multiple Regression," Leadership Quarterly, 14 a Leadership Pattern," Harvard Business Review, 51 (1973): 3. Testing. The leader identifies a problem and pro-
(2003): 3-23. 162-180. poses a tentative solution, asking for the reaction of
 PART
II · AdministrativeProcesses 5 · Leadership
CHAPTER

those who will implement it, but making the final
decision.
4. Consulting. The group members have a chance
to influence the decision from the beginning. The
leader presents a problem and relevant background
information. The group is invited to increase the
number of alternative actions to be considered. The
leader then selects the solution she regards as most
promising.
5. Joining . The leader participates in the discussion as
a member and agrees in advance to carry out what-
ever decision the group makes.
Influences on the Leader Tannenbaum and Schmidt
assert that a wide range of factors determines whether
superordinate-centered leadership, subordinate-
centered leadership, or something in between is best.
remember that each member is influenced by many per- Effective Styles
sonality variables and expectations. Generally speak-
ing, the leader can permit the group greater freedom if
the following essential conditions exist: Executive
Members have relatively high needs for independence.
Members have readiness to assume responsibility.
Members have a relatively high tolerance for ambi-
guity.
Members are interested in the problem and feel that it Autocrat
is important.
Members understand and identify with the goals of the
elated Integrated
organization.
Members have the necessary knowledge and experience
to deal with the problem.
Members expect to share in decision making.
Forces in the Situation. Some of the critical environ-
Ineffective Scyles Separated Dedicated
mental pressures on the leader are as follows: j,

These factors fall into four broad categories: forces in i

The problem itself: Do the members have the kind of
the leader, forces in the group, forces in the situation,
knowledge that is needed? Does the complexity of the
and long-run objectives and strategy. Missionary O>mpromiser
problem require special experience or a one-person Task Oriented
solution?

Forces in the Leader.
Value system: How strongly does the leader feel that
individuals should have a share in making the decisions
that affect them? Or, how convinced is the leader that
the official who is paid or chosen to assume responsi-
bility should personally carry the burden of decision
making? Also, what is the relative importance that the
leader attaches to organizational efficiency and per-
sonal growth of subordinates?
Confidence in the group members: Leaders differ in the
amount of trust they have in other people. After consid-
ering the knowledge and competence of a group with
respect to a problem, a leader may (justifiably or not)
have more confidence in his own capabilities than in
those of the group members.
Personal leadership inclinations: Leaders differ in the
manner (e.g., telling or team role) in which they seem
to function more comfortably and naturally.
Feelings of security in an uncertain situation: The
leader who releases control over the decision-making
process reduces the predictability of the outcome. Lead-
ers who have a greater need than others for predictabil-
ity and stability are more likely to "tell" or "sell" than
to "join."
Forces in the Group Members. Before deciding how
to lead a certain group, the leader will also want to
The pressure of time: The more the leader feels the need
for an immediate decision, the more difficult it is to in-
volve other people.
Long-Run Objectives and Strategy. As leaders work on
daily problems, their choice of a leadership pattern is
usually limited. But they may also begin to regard some
of the forces mentioned as variables over which they
have some control and to consider such long-range ob-
jectives as
Raising the level of member motivation.
Improving the quality of all decisions.
Developing teamwork and morale.
Furthering the individual development of members.
Increasing the readiness to accept change.
Generally, a high degree of member-centered behav-
ior is more likely to achieve these long-range purposes.
But the successful administrator can be characterized as
neither a strong leader nor a permissive one. Rather, a
successful leader is sensitive to the forces that influence
her in a given situation and can accurately assess those
forces.
Implications for Practice The Tannenbaum-Schmidt
model has not generated any empirical research, prob-
ably because there are no instruments associated with
~·~
Deserter Autocrat
FIGURE 5-8
Reddin's Three-Dimensional Model of Leadership Effectiveness
Source : Adapted from WilliamJ . Reddin, Managerial Effectiveness, © 1970, p. 230.
the formulation. However, the model makes intuitive
sense and can be used to identify alternative leadership
behaviors available to a school administrator and the
general classes of factors (influences on the leader) that
are relevant in selecting an appropriate leadership style
to fit a given situation.
Three-Dimensional Leadership Styles
William Reddin developed another useful model for
identifying the leadership styles of practicing school ad-
ministrators. 50 Figure 5-8 shows his three-dimensional
J. Reddin, Managerial Effectiveness
50 William (New York:
McGraw-Hill, 1970).
model. By adding an effectiveness dimension to the
task behavior and relationship behavior dimensions
of the earlier Ohio State leadership models, Reddin
has attempted to integrate the concepts of leadership
style with the situational demands of a specific environ-
ment. As Figure 5-8 shows, when the style of a leader
is appropriate to a given situation, it is termed effective;
when the style is inappropriate to a given situation, it
is termed ineffective. In the center grid, the four basic
leadership styles in the model are related, integrated,
separated, and dedicated. Reddin proposes that any of
the four basic leadership styles may be effective or inef-
fective depending on the situation. These effective and
ineffective equivalents result in eight operational lead-
ership styles, which we briefly summarize.
 PARTII · Administrative Processes CHAPTER5 · Leadership

Effective Styles
Developer. A leader using this style gives maximum
concern to relationships and minimum concern to
tasks. The leader is seen as having implicit trust in
people and concerned mainly with developing them as
individuals.
Executive. A leader using this style gives a great deal
of concern to both tasks and relationships. The leader
is seen as a good motivator, setting high standards,
recognizing individual differences, and using team
management.
Bureaucrat. A leader using this style gives minimum
concern to both tasks and relationships. The leader is
seen as conscientious and is interested mainly in rules
and wants to maintain and control the situation by the
use of rules.
Benevolent Autocrat. A leader using this style gives
maximum concern to tasks and minimum concern to
relationships. The leader is seen as knowing exactly
what she wants and how to get it without causing
resentment.
Ineffective Styles
Missionary. A leader using this style gives maximum
concern to people and relationships and minimum con-
cern to tasks in a situation in which such behavior is
inappropriate. The leader is seen as a "do-gooder" who
values harmony as an end in itself.
Compromiser. A leader using this style gives a great deal
of concern to both tasks and relationships in a situation
that requires emphasis on only one or on neither. The
leader is seen as a poor decision maker, easily affected
by pressure.
Deserter .. A leader using this style gives minimum con-
cern to tasks and relationships in a situation where
such behavior is inappropriate. The leader is seen as
uninvolved and passive.
Autocrat. A leader using this style gives minimum con-
cern to tasks and minimum concern to relationships in
a situation in which such behavior is inappropriate. The
leader is seen as having no confidence in others, as un-
pleasant, and as interested only in the immediate job.
Implications for Practice Reddin's model incor-
porates three theoretical bases discussed previously,
namely leader traits and behaviors, groups, and situ-
ational factors. Reddin's model has not been the object
of much empirical research. Instead, it has become a
popular technique for use in training administrators and the organization. The person may be motivated Leadership Styles The key for leadership effective-
in numerous organizational contexts. Using Reddin's with a strong desire to do well and at the same time ness in Hersey and Blanchard's model is to match the
sixty-four-item questionnaire, administrators can iden- be insecure about their ability to do the job. Even situation with the appropriate leadership style. Four
tify their leadership styles. Primarily, executive develop- though the person's commitment and motivation basic leadership styles are in the model: telling, selling,
ment seminars conducted by Reddin and his colleagues are strong, their insecurity will have to be addressed participating, and delegating.
are designed to make participants cognizant of a vari- before they can move forward into Readiness.
• Telling Style. This is a high-task, low-relationship
ety of leadership styles and train leaders to adapt styles Someone or something will have to help then over style and is effective when subordinates are low in
this hurdle. The number one error in diagnosing
to particular situations in order to achieve maximum motivatiQil,and ability.
willingness is to view someone who is insecure or
effectiveness.
apprehensive as unmotivated. • Selling Style. This is a high-task, high-relationship
style and is effective when subordinates have
• Ability is determined by the amount of knowledge, adequate motivation but low ability.
Situational Leadership Styles experience, and demonstrated skill the follower
brings to the task. A diagnosis based on the actual • Participating Style. This is a low-task, high-relationship
Another well-known and useful framework for
display of ability. The caution here is not to diagnose style and is effective when subordinates have adequate
analyzing leadership behavior is Paul Hersey and
ability but low motivation.
Kenneth Blanchard's situational leadership theory. 51 It Readiness based on the leader's beliefs of what the
follower should know. A frequent leadership error is • Delegating Style. This is a low-task, low-relationship
is an extension of Tannenbaum and Schmidt's lead-
to assume knowledge and hold the follower account- style and is effective when subordinates are very high
ership-style continuum, Blake and Mouton's manage-
rial grid, and Reddin's three-dimensional leadership able for skills he or she has not had an opportunity in ability and motivation.
styles. Following the lead of the earlier Ohio State to demonstrate. Figure 5-9 summarizes the situational leadership theory.
leadership studies, and like the leadership-style con-
tinuum, the grid, and the three-dimensional frame-
works, situational leadership theory identifies two key
leadership behaviors: task behavior and relationship
behavior. Situational Leadership®
i InfluenceBehaviors
~;
• Task Behavior. The leader engages in one-way com- HIGH
munication by explaining what each subordinate is
i High
Relationship
High Task
and
and
to do, as well as when, where, and how tasks are to High
Low Task Relationship
be performed.
• Relationship Behavior. The leader engages in two-
way communication by providing socio-emotional
support, "psychological strokes," and "facilitating
1
... ci PerformanceReadiness®
o.-
behaviors." ·-1;;"> HIGH MODERATE LOW
-mii
i:Q i:Q
u .&
S3 S2 R4 R3 R2 Rl
·£: ~ S4 Sl Able and Able but Unable but Unable and
... i::
0 0
Situational Factor: Readiness of Followers Taking P..·- Confident Insecure Confident Insecure
the lead from Fiedler's contingency factors, Hersey and
p,,'"
::,- and Willing or Unwilling or Willing or Unwilling
en~
Blanchard incorporated the readiness of followers as
a key situational variable in their model. Hersey and
Blanchard see two types of readiness as particularly
important: willingness and ability.
• Willingness is a combination of the varying degrees
j Low
Relationship
and
High Task
and
Low
®
LOW Low Task Relationship
of confidence, commitment, and motivation. Any one
Task Behavior
of these variables can be prepotent; that is, a person LOW Directive Behavior -----HIGH
may be completely committed to the job, quality,
FIGURE5-9
The Hersey-Situational Leadership®Model
Source: © Copyright 2006 Reprinted with permission of the Center for Leadership Studies. Inc .. Escondido. CA 92025.
51
Paul Hersey and Kenneth H. Blanchard, Management of All rights reserved.
Organizational Behavior: International Edition (Upper Saddle
River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2008).
 PARTII · Administrative
Applying Situational Leadership
School
administratorsshouldconsidersituationalleadership stylessystematically.and decide under ·
what circumstanceseach is appropriate. Schooladministratorscan apply the four leadership styles
In the followingmanner:
• TellingStyle. Give specific instructions and super-
vise staff members closely. This leadership style is
primarily for first-year teachers who need a lot of
instruction and supervision.
• Selling Style. Explain decisions and solicit suggestions
from followers but continue to direct tasks. This lead-
ership style works especially well with non-tenured
teachers, who are in their second or third year on the
job. They're gaining confidence and competence, but
they're still getting their feet on the ground.
• ParticipatingStyle, Make decisions together with staff
members and support their efforts toward perform-
ing tasks . This leadership style works with highly
As Figure 5-9 shows, when subordinates have very
low readiness, leaders should define roles and direct the
behavior of group members. When subordinates have
moderately low readiness, leaders should provide some
direction, but they can attempt to persuade subordi-
nates to accept decisions and directions . When subor-
dinates have moderately high readiness, initial direction
is not needed, but group members should share in de-
cision making. Finally, when subordinates have high
readiness, leaders should demonstrate confidence in
group members by delegating tasks to them. Successful
leadership is achieved by selecting the right leadership
style, which Hersey argues is contingent on the level of
followers' readiness. To use the model, identify a point
on the readiness continuum that represents follower
readiness to perform a specific task. Then construct
a perpendicular line from that point to a point where
it intersects with the curved line representing leader
behavior. This point indicates the most appropriate
amount of task behavior and relationship behavior for
that specific situation.
Note that the curved line never goes to either the
lower left or the lower right corner. In both quadrants
1 and 4, there are combinations of both task and rela-
tionship behavior. Style 1 always has some relationship
behavior and style 4 always has some task behavior.
Processes
ADMINISTRATIVE
ADVICE •
. cant differences were found in principals' effectiveness
creative teachers. Applying this style can take the
form of supporting teachers when they come up with
excellent ideas and helping them to bring those ideas
to fruition.
• Delegating Style. Turn over decisions and responsi-
bility for Implementing them to staff members. This
leadership style works with people who go above
and beyond their instructions.
Source: Adapted from Bob Webb, " Situational Leadership: The Key Is
Knowing When to Do What," Executive Educator, 12 (1990) : 29-30.
Copyright 1990, the National School Boards Association . Used by
permission .
It should be noted that the Hersey Situational Leadership®
Model is both a developmental and a regression model.
The key to the success of situational leadership is
matching leadership styles to the appropriate people
and situations. (See Administrative Advice 5-2.)
Implications for Practice The Hersey-Situational
Leadership® Model is useful because it builds on other
explanations of leadership that emphasize the role of
task and relationship behaviors. As a result, it is widely
used for leadership training and development in a wide
variety of organizational settings. The situational lead-
ership model has intuitive appeal as well. School ad -
ministrators can benefit from this model by attempting
to diagnose the readiness of followers before choosing
the right leadership style.
Until recently, there was almost no empirical research
evidence to support the validity of the Hersey-Blanchard
model. However, one study in a school setting provides
partial support for this model. The study was a field
test of Hersey and Blanchard's situational leadership
theory in a school setting. Elementary school principals
from one large, urban school district received train-
ing using Hersey and Blanchard's framework. Pretests
and posttests were administered to the principals and
a sample of their teachers before and after training to
CHAPTER5 · Leadership
determine the effects of training on principals' leader-
ship effectiveness and style range. The study provided
only partial support for the Hersey-Blanchard theory.
Principals were perceived as more effective three years
after training than before training. However, no signifi-
immediately following training, nor in principals' lead-
ership style range before and after training. 52
Other Contemporary Perspectives
Given the importance of leadership, researchers devote
attention to studying new and insightful perspectives.
Five other contemporary perspectives of recent inter-
est are the synergistic leadership theory, leader-member
exchange theory, reciprocal influence theory, substitutes
for leadership, and transformational leadership.
Synergistic Leadership Theory
Modernist theories in leadership were traditionally
dominated by masculine incorporation and lacked fem-
inine presence in development and language. The syn-
ergistic leadership theory (SLT), developed by Irby and
colleagues, seeks to explicate the need for a postmod-
ernist leadership theory by providing an alternative to,
and not a replacement for, traditional theories. 53 The
SLT includes issues concerning diversity and the inclu -
sion of the female voice in the theory. In a tetrahedron
model, the theory uses four factors to demonstrate as-
pects not only of leadership but its effects on various
institutions and positions (see Figure 5-10). The factors
are beliefs, attitudes, and values; leadership behavior;
external forces; and organizational structure.
Factor l : Beliefs.Attitudes. and Values As shown in
Figure 5-10, beliefs, attitudes, and values are depicted
as dichotomous, as an individual or group would either
adhere or not adhere to specific beliefs, attitudes, or val-
ues at a certain point in time. Some dichotomous exam-
ples include the following: (a) believes in the importance
of professional growth for all individuals including self;
52
Salvatore V. Pascarella and Fred C. Lunenburg, "A Field Test
of Hersey and Blanchard's Situational Leadership Theory in a
School Setting," College Student Journal, 21 (1988): 33-37.
53 Beverly J. Irby, Genevieve Brown, Jo Ann Duffy, and Diane
Trautman, "The Synergistic Leadership Theory," Journal of
Educational Administration, 40 (2002): 304-322.
does not believe that professional development is impor-
tant; (b) has an openness to change; does not have an
openness to change; (c) values diversity; does not value
diversity; or (d) believes that integrity is important for
all involved in schooling; does not value integrity.
Factor 2: Leadership Behavior The second factor
of the theory, leadership behavior, derives directly from
the literature on male and female leadership behaviors
and is depicted as a range of behaviors from autocratic
to nurturer. The range of behaviors includes those
ascribed to female leaders, such as interdependence,
cooperation, receptivity, merging acceptance, and being
aware of patterns, wholes, and context; as well as those
ascribed to male leaders, including self-assertion, sepa-
ration, independence, control, and competition.
Factor 3: External Forces External forces, as
depicted in the model, are those influencers outside the
control of the organization or the leader that interact
with them and that inherently embody a set of beliefs,
attitudes, and values. Significant external influencers
or forces relate to local, national, and international
community and conditions, governmental regulations,
laws, demographics, cultural climate, technological ad-
vances, economic situations, political climate, family
conditions, and geography. These examples of external
forces, as well as others, including those listed in the
model, interact in significant ways with the other fac-
tors in the synergistic leadership theory.
Factor 4: Organizational Structure Organizational
structure refers to characteristics of the organizations
and how they operate. The synergistic leadership theory
model (Figure 5-10) depicts organizational structures
as ranging from open, feminist organizations to tightly ,
bureaucratic ones. Bureaucratic organizations include
division of labor, rules, hierarchy of authority, imperson-
ality, and competence, whereas feminist organizations
are characterized by practices such as participative deci-
sion making, systems of rotating leadership, promotion
of community and cooperation, and power sharing.
Implications for Practice The synergistic leadership
theory provides a framework for describing interac-
tions and dynamic tensions among beliefs, attitudes,
and values; leadership behaviors; external forces;
and organizational structure. As a result, a leader can -
analyze and describe particular interactions that may
account for tension, conflict, or harmony at specific
points in time or over time. If it is discovered that
 PARTII . Administrative Processes CHAPTER5 · Leadership 125·

Organizational Structure theory have included national and international samples responsibility, and commitment to the success of the
Rotates leadership and non-majority populations. 54 organization.
Uses expertise of members, not rank
Has consensually derived goals
In contrast, members of the out-group are supervised
Values members within the narrow limits of their formal employment
Rewards professional development Leader-Member Exchange Theory contract. Authority is legitimated by the implicit con-
Relies on informal communication
Disperses power tract between the member and the organization. The
Many theories of leadership assume that the superior
Promotes community leader will provide the support, consideration, and as-
Promotes nurturing and caring behaves in essentially the same manner toward all mem-
sistance mandated by duty but will not go beyond such
Promotes empowerment bers of his work group. In fact, however, leaders often limits. In effect, the leader is practicing a contractual
Has many rules
act very differently toward different subordinates, and
Has separate tasks and roles exchange with such members; they are "hired hands,"
Maintains a tall hierarchy develop contrasting kinds of relationships with them.
who are being influenced by legitimate authority rather
Initiates few changes This perspective on the leadership process is provided
than true leadership. In return, out-group members will
by the Leader-Member Exchange Theory (LMX). 55
do what they have to do and little beyond that.
The LMX theory focuses on a dyad, that is, the rela-
tionship between a leader and each subordinate con-
Implications for Practice An important implica-
.
.................. ...........
sidered independently, rather than on the relationship
tion of the leader-member exchange theory is that
External Forces
Perceptions/expectations of
supervisor/colleagues
. ~ Leadership
Behavior
between the superior and the group. Each linkage, or
relationship, is likely to differ in quality. Thus, the same
the quality of the relationship between the leader and
each group member has important job consequences.
Autocratic administrator may have poor interpersonal relations
Perceptions/expectationsof Delegator Specifically, the research supporting the LMX theory
community Collaborator with some subordinates and open and trusting relations
Local, state and national indicates that subordinates with in-group status with
Communicator with others. The relationships within these pairings,
regulations Task-oriented their leaders will have higher productivity and job sat-
Resources or dyads, may be of a predominantly in-group or out-
Risk-taker isfaction, improved motivation, and engage in more
Location Relational group nature.
Culture of community citizenship behaviors at work. 56 These findings are not
Nurturer A leader initiates either an in-group or an out-group
Socio-economic status Controller surprising, considering the self-fulfilling prophesy (see
Language/ethnic groups exchange with a member of the organization early in
Stabilizer Chapter 4). Leaders invest more resources in those they
Political/specialinterest groups Intuitive the life of the dyadic relationship. Members of the in-
expect to perform well (i.e., those they have designated
group are invited to participate in decision making and
as in-group members); and they treat them differently

'
are given added responsibility. The leader allows these
than they do out-group members. Therefore, it is sug-
members some latitude in their roles; in effect, the leader
Beliefs, Attitudes, Value/ gested that school administrators develop high-quality
and key subordinates negotiate the latter's responsibili-
relationships with as many subordinates as possible.
Importance of professional growth ties in a noncontractual exchange relationship. In es-
Openness to change/diversity They should have as large an in-group and as small an
sence, an in-group member is elevated to the unofficial
Adherence to tradition out-group as possible.
Collegial trust/support role of "trusted lieutenant." In-group members, in many
Importance of character, ethics, respects, enjoy the benefits of job latitude (influence in
integrity decision making, open communications, and confidence
Importance of programs for Reciprocal Influence Theory
at-risk/gifted students in and consideration for the member). The subordinate
Role of teachers/learners typically reciprocates with greater than required expen- The trait theories of leadership, leadership behavior
Purpose of school
Role of teachers/administrators
ditures of time and effort, the assumption of greater approaches, and contingency theories of leadership
Importance of employee well-being share one underlying assumption: Leader behavior af-
FIGURE 5-10 fects subordinate behavior. Particularly in correlational
studies, any association between leader behavior and
Irby. Brown, Duffy, and Troutman's Synergistic Leadership Model group effectiveness has been interpreted as measuring
54 BeverlyJ. Irby, Genevieve Brown, and LingLing Yang, "The
Source: Adapted from Beverly. J. Irby, Genevieve Brown, Jo Ann Duffy. and Diane
Synergistic Leadership Theory: A 21st Century Leadership
Trautman. 'The Synergistic Leadership Theory: Journal of Educational Administration,
Theory," in C.M. Achilles, B.J. Irby, B. Alford, & G. Perreault
40 (2002): 313. (eds.), Remember Our Mission: Making Education and 56 Remus Ilies, Jennifer D. Nahrgang, and Frederick. P.
Schools Better for Students (Lancaster, PA: Pro-Active Publica- Morgeson, "Leader-Member Exchange and Citizenship
tension exists between even two of the factors, then understanding of the environment to aid in decisions
tions, 2009), pp. 93-105. Behaviors: A Meta-Analysis," Journal of Applied Psychology,
the effectiveness of the leader or the organization itself made by the leader. And SLT fosters a reflective prac- 55 GeorgeB. Graen and Mary Uhl-Bien, "Relationship-Based 92 (2007): 269-277; Ziguong Chen, Wing Lam, and Jian An
can be negatively impacted. Not only is the SLT ben- tice approach, as it encourages the leader to engage in
Approach to Leadership: Development of Leader-Member Zhong, "Leader-Member Exchange and Member Perfor-
eficial in determining "fit" while a leader is employed self-assessment. Exchange (LMX) Theory of Leadership over 25" Years: mance: A Look at Individual-Level Negative Feedback-Seeking
in an organization, but also it can be of assistance in Numerous validation studies of the SLT theory have Applying a Multi-Level Multi-Domain Perspective," Leader- Behavior and Team-Level Empowerment Culture," Journal of
job selection. Moreover, the SLT can serve to build an been conducted to date. These empirical tests of the ship Quarterly, 6 (1995): 219-247. Applied Psychology, 92 (2007): 202-212.
 PARTII · Administrative Processes CHAPTER5 · Leadership

the impact of the leader's action on subordinate satis- 4. High leader positive reward behavior tends to lead Tqble 5-6 Substitutes and Neutralizers for Supportive and Instrumental Leadership
faction, motivation, or performance. More recently, to improved subordinate performance. However,
however, it has been recognized that in any complex few studies have shown any direct evidence that r;;cfor Supportive Leadership*
- ~-~--~~~-.ii-!!" i .I!!

Instrumental Leadership*
~111,;::~~

l
organization the flow of influence or authority is not leader initiating structure or leader consideration f;_ st

unilateral and downward-from leader to subordinate- causes increases or decreases in subordinate perfor-
t,Sul:lordinate Characteristics
'f-
but also upward from subordinate to leader. Recipro- mance. These findings emphasize the importance of l 1. Experience, ability. training Substitute
cal influence theory states that certain leader behaviors rewards as an influence factor in determining sub- ; ~.,:Professional' orientation Substitute Substitute
cause subordinate behaviors, and certain acts of subor- ordinate behavior.58 ! ~-Jndittererne toward organizatlona1 rewards
co,
:j;_
- - it - ii ~
Neutralizer Neutrci1izer
dinates (for example, low performance) can cause the "'"*-!t

leader to modify behavior.57 In short, it is realistic to view organizations as places

j,Tasl<<?hcitac~ristics'
~ - J- 1:.

The reciprocal influence theory is a reality in most where leaders and subordinates interact in a complex l,, 1. Structured,
.
routine .Jdsk
J' Substitute
organizations. For example, consider the principal of way, each exerting reciprocal influence on the other. t 2. Taskfeedbbck Substitute
a school who is dedicated to the mission of improv- Research efforts examining the reciprocal influence f
I 3:Hntrinsic~lly~-satisfying tasl<
,~ Substitute
ing student achievement scores in the building. How process will continue to be of interest to school admin- t . ' .. ' .
f"OrganizaHonal Ctiaracteristics
is this principal's behavior influenced by subordinates? istrators and researchers and will be used to emphasize }c-'' cc "' ,-

One obvious response is that the leader will closely su-
pervise teachers who are not performing well and will
loosely supervise others who are fulfilling their mission
of improving instruction. Thus, by their performance,
subordinates are influencing the leader. Of course, the
leader is influencing them as well. As another example,
consider a university dean who has a tenured profes-
sor who is very hot tempered. Although the dean has
authority over this faculty member and can order the
individual to perform many job-related activities, the
dean may be fearful of the subordinate's temper and
will modify her leadership style to accommodate this
individual. In this case, the professor is probably ex-
erting more influence on the university dean than the
leader is influencing the subordinate.
Implications for Practice Several studies support
the notion of reciprocal influence between leaders and
subordinates. The results to date suggest the following:
1. Leader consideration or employee-centered behav-
ior and leader positive reinforcement both can lead
to employee job satisfaction.
2. High initiating structure or production-centered
leadership sometimes leads to lower employee job
satisfaction.
3. Low-performing subordinates tend to cause leaders
to use more initiating structure/production-centered
leadership and punitive reward behavior (that is,
punishment).
57 Frederick A. Starke, Management: Leading People and
Organizations in the 21st Century (Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Prentice Hall, 2001).
the dynamics of leadership in schools.
Substitutes for Leadership
The concept of substitutes for leadership has evolved in
response to dissatisfaction with the progress of leader-
ship theory in explaining the effects of leader behavior
on performance outcomes. Research studies demon-
strate that, in many situations, leadership may be un-
important or redundant. Certain subordinate, task,
and organizational factors can act as substitutes for
leadership or neutralize the leader's influence on sub-
ordinates. 59 Table 5-6 lists some possible leadership
substitutes and neutralizers for supportive/relationship
leadership and instrumental/task leadership.
As shown in Table 5-6, subordinate experience, abil-
ity, and training may substitute for instrumental leader-
ship. For example, professionals such as teachers may
have so much experience, ability, and training that they
do not need instrumental leadership to perform well
and be satisfied. Such leadership acts would be redun-
dant and might be resented, and could even lead to
reduced performance. Similarly, subordinates who have
a strong professional orientation (like teachers) might
not require instrumental or supportive leadership.
58 Andrew D. Szilagi, Management and Performance (Upper
Saddle River, NJ: Addison Wesley, 2010).
59
Steven Kerr and John M. Jermier, "Substitutes for Leadership:
Their Meaning and Measurement," Organizational Behavior
and Human Performance, 22 (1978): 375-403; John P. Hovell
and Peter W. Dorfman, "Leadership and Substitutes for Leader-
ship among Professional and Nonprofessional Workers," Jour-
nal of Applied Behavioral Science, 22 (1986): 29-46.
r '):Col;)esfve work ~r9up
2. ileader lacks position power
3. ~ormolization of goals and plan{·
4., Rigid rules and procedure~ · .
i~
Physicol
" ;'"--
~
distance. """"r\'
between
;,_-\ ,.
leader
:.
andsu6ordinates
"-' •, -l ' ...
*Supportive and instrumental leadership are analogous to leader consideration
Source: Gary A.Yuki. Leadership in Organizations. 7th ed. (Upper Saddle River,NJ:Prentice Hall, 201O). p. 237. © 201 O.Reprinted by permission
of Prentice Hall. Upper Saddle River,NJ.
When subordinates do not desire the rewards a leader
can provide, this would neutralize almost any behavior
on the part of the leader.
Certain types of work (for example, teaching) are
highly structured and automatically provide feedback
(through students' oral and written responses) and,
therefore, substitute for instrumental leadership. Fur-
thermore, when the task is intrinsically satisfying (like
teaching), there will be little need for supportive behav-
ior on the part of the leader to make up for poor de-
sign. Finally, when the organization is structured in a
way that makes clear the paths to goals-for example,
through plans, rules, policies, and standard operating
procedures-such structure reduces the need for in-
strumental leadership. This is particularly apparent in
sociotechnical and autonomous work groups found in
schools. Sometimes a strong union has the same effect,
if it has a colle.ctive bargaining agreement that severely
constrains the administrator's position power.
Implications for Practice It appears that leader-
ship matters most when substitutes are not present in
subordinates' skills, task design, or the organization's
structure. When substitutes are present, the impact of
leadership is neutralized.
Substitute Substitute
Neutralizer: .~(iutralizer
7 ~ut?stitute
~eutralizer
~eutrolizer, Neutro!izer
and leader initiating structuring.
Transformational Leadership
Building on the work of James McGregor Burns, 60
Bernard Bass61 has developed an approach that focuses
on both transformational and transactional leader-
ship. Recent research has focused on differentiating
transformational leaders from transactional leaders. 62
The more traditional transactional leadership involves
60
James McGregor Burns, Leadership (New York: Harper &
Row, 1978).
61
Bernard M. Bass, Leadership and Performance Beyond
Expectations (New York: Free Press, 1985); Bernard M. Bass
and Ronald E. Riggio, Transformational Leadership, 2nd ed.
(Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 2006).
62
Bei:nard M. Bass, Bruce J. Avolio, D.I. Jung, and Y. Berson,
"Predicting Unit Performance by Assessing Transformational
and Transactional Leadership," Journal of Applied Psychol-
ogy, 88 (2003): 207-218; U.R. Dumdum, Kevin B. Lowe, and
Bruce J. Avolio, "A Meta-Analysis of Transformational Leader-
ship Correlates of Effectiveness and Satisfaction: An Update
and Extension," in B. J. Avolio and F. J. Yammarino (eds.),
Transactional and Charismatic Leadership: The Road Ahead
(New York: JAI Press, 2002), pp. 35-66; Timothy A. Judge
and Robert F. Piccolo, "Transformational and Transactional
Leadership: A Meta-Analytic Test of Their Relative Validity,"
Journal of Applied Psychology, 89 (2004): 755-768.
 PARTII · Administrative Processes
leader -follower exchanges necessary for achieving
agreed-upon performance goals between leaders and
followers. These exchanges involve four dimensions:
contingent reward, management by exception (active),
management by exception (passive), and laissez faire. 63
• Contingent Reward: contracts the exchange of
rewards for effort; promises rewards for good
performance; recognizes accomplishments.
• Management by Exception (active}:watches for devia-
tions from rules and standards; takes corrective action.
• Management by Exception (passive}: intervenes only
if standards are not met.
• Laissez-Faire: abdicates responsibilities; avoids
making decisions.
Transformationalleadershipis based on leaders shift-
ing the values, beliefs, and needs of their followers in
three important ways: (a) increasing followers' aware-
ness of the importance of their tasks and the importance
of performing them well; (b) making followers aware of
their needs for personal growth , development, and ac-
complishment; and (c) inspiring followers to transcend
their own self-interests for the good of the organ ization. 64
Transformational leadership has four dimensions: ideal-
ized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stim-
ulation, and individualized consideration. These four
dimensions are often called "the Four I's."65
Idealized Influence: involves behaving in ways that earn
the admiration, trust, and respect of followers, causing
followers to want to identify with and emulate the leader.
Idealized influence is synonymous with charisma. For ex-
ample, SteveJobs, who founded Apple Computer, showed
idealized influence by emphasizing the importance of cre-
ating the Macintosh as a radical new computer. He has
since followed up with products like the iPod.
Inspirational Motivation: involves behaving in ways
that foster enthusiasm for and commitment to a shared
vision of the future. Frequently, that vision is transmit-
ted through the use of symbols to focus efforts. As an
example, in the movie Patton, George C. Scott stood on
a stage in front of his troops with a wall-sized American
flag in the background and ivory-handled revolvers in
holsters at his sides.
63 Bass
and Riggio, Transformati onal Leadership.
64 BernardM. Bass, The Bass Handb ook of Leadership: Theory,
Research, and Management Applicati ons, 5th ed. (New York:
Simon & Schuster, 2010).
65 Bass and Riggio, Transformational Leadership.
Intellectual Stimulation: involves behaving in ways that
challenge followers to be innovative and creative by
questioning assumptions and reframing old situations
in new ways. For example, your boss encourages you
to "think out of the box, " that is, to look at a difficult
problem in a new way.
Individualized Consideration: involves behaving in
ways that help followers achieve their potential through
coaching , professional development, and mentoring .
For example, your boss stops by your office and makes
comments which reinforce your feeling of personal
worth and importance in the organization.
The full range of leadership model (transactional and
transformational leadership) is depicted in Figure 5-11.
As shown in Figure 5-11, laissez-faire is the least effec-
tive of the leader behaviors. Leaders using this style are
ra rely viewed as effective. Management by exception
(active or passive) is slightly better than laissez-faire,
but it is still considered ineffective leadership. Lead-
ers who practice management by exception leadership
either search for deviations from standard s and take
corrective action or tend to intervene only when there is
a problem, which is usually too late. Contingent reward
leadership can be an effective style of leadership. The
leader attains follower agreement on what needs to be
accomplished using promised or actual rewards in ex-
change for actual performance. Leaders are generally
most effective when they regularly use each of the four
transformational leadership behaviors: idealized influ-
ence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation,
and individualized consideration .66
How Transformational Leadership Works A great
deal of research has been done to explain how trans-
format ional leadership works. Generally four elements
emerge: creativity, goals, vision, and commitment.
Creativity Transformational leaders are more effective
because they are more creative themselves. They are also
more effective because they encourage their followers to
be more creative as well. 67 Transformational leaders are
66 Ibid.
67
D.I . Jung, "Transformational and Transactional Leader-
ship and Their Effects on Creativity in Groups," Creativity
Research Journal, 13 (2001) : 185-195; D.I. Jung, C. Chow,
and A. Wu, "The Role of Tran sformational Leadership in
Enhancing Innovation: Hypotheses and Some Preliminary
Findings," Leadership Quarterly, 14 (2003): 525-544.
CHAPTER5 · Leadership
Effective
Idealized Influence
Inspirational
Motivation
Intellectual
Stimulation
lndividualiudConsideration
Passive Active
ContingentReward
Managementby Exception
(Active}
Transactional
Laissez-Faire
Ineffective
FIGURE5-11
Full Range Leadership Model
proactive rather than reactive; creative rather than com- and other stakeholders. 71Not only do transformational
pliant; and audacious rather than adherent. 68 leaders communicate a vision, they also model the vision.
In other words, they "walk the talk" by doing things that
Goals Goal s are another key element in how trans- enact the vision. 72 For example, leaders in higher edu-
formational leadership works. Followers of transfor - cation (deans, associate deans, department heads) walk
mational leaders are more likely to pursue ambitious the talk by doing research, acquiring grants, and publish-
goals, understand and agree with the formal goals of ing extensively in the research and professional literature
the organization, and believe that the goals they are alongside the faculty members they lead.
pursuing will lead to their own self-fulfillment.69
Commitment Making a vision a reality requires fol-
Vision Transformational leaders create a strategic vision lowers' commitment. Transformational leaders build
that energizes and unifies followers. 70They communicate commitment to the vision through enthusiasm for every
the vision with emotional appeal that captivates followers project they tackle; by being persistent in their follow-
through on all projects; and by involving followers in
the creation of the vision. 73
68
Clete Bulach , Fred C. Lunenburg, and Les Potter, Creat-
ing a Cultur e for High-Perform ing Schools: A Comprehen - Research Findings Transformational leadership is
sive Approach to School Reform (Lanham, MD: Rowman & currently the most popular leadership approach. The
Littlefield, 2008).
69 71
Yair Berson and Bruce J. Avolio, "Transformational Leader- Gary A. Yuki, Leadership in Organizations , 4th ed. (Upper
ship and the Dissemination of Organizational Goals : A Case Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2010).
Study of a Telecommunications Firm," Leadership Quarterly, 72
Peter G. Northouse, Leadership: Theory and Practice, 5th ed.
15 (2004) : 62°5-646. (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2010).
70
Warren G. Bennis , Learning to Lead (New York: Basic 73
Michael J. Fullan , All Systems Go: The Change Imperative
Books, 2011). for Whole School Reform (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2010).
 PARTII · Administrative Processes CHAPTER
5 · Leadership 131

evidence supporting transformational leadership is
impressive. Transformational leadership has been sup-
ported in various occupations (for example, school
superintendents, school principals, college presidents,
naval commanders, military cadets, ministers, shop
stewards, sales personnel, and school teachers) and at
various job levels.
A meta-analysis of 49 studies indicated that trans-
formational leadership was positively associated with
measures of leadership effectiveness and followers' job sat-
isfaction.74 A second meta-analysis of 87 studies indicated
that transformational leadership was positively related
to leader effectiveness ratings, group or organizational
performance, and followers' job satisfaction and motiva-
tion. 75 A third meta-analysis of 39 studies revealed that
the transformational leadership dimensions of inspira-
tional motivation, individualized consideration, and intel-
lectual stimulation were related to leadership effectiveness
in most studies, as well as idealized influence when an or-
ganization was in crisis. Moreover, except for the contin-
gent reward dimension, the transactional leadership styles
did not result in leadership effectiveness ratings. 76
These results were reinforced by findings from two
large-scale studies of transformational leadership in pub-
lic school settings. The first study involved 317 school
superintendents and their followers (564 principals). The
second study included 275 principals and their followers
(397 teachers). In both studies (n = 1553 participants),
three of the four transformational leadership dimensions
(inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and in-
dividualized consideration) were related to leader effec-
tiveness ratings. 77 The authors concluded that idealized
74 Dumdum, Lowe, and Avolio, "A Meta-Analysis of Transfor-
influence, or charisma, may not be a significant factor in
stable public school environments. Furthermore, none of
the transactional leadership behaviors, except contingent
reward, were related to leader effectiveness ratings.
Most of the research on transformational leader-
ship to date has relied on Bass and Avolio's 78 Multi-
factor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) or qualitative
research that describes leaders through interviews. A
confirmatory factor analysis of the MLQ using data
from the two aforementioned public school studies
(n = 1553) supported a three-factor model of transfor-
mational leadership. 79The three factors supported by
the confirmatory factor analysis appear to be consistent
with three of the "Four I's" proposed by Bass.
Implications for Practice There are several impor-
tant leadership implications that can be derived from
the studies of transformational leadership. Previous
research has found transformational leadership to be
positively related to leader effectiveness ratings, group
or organizational performance, and follower job satis-
faction and motivation. However, idealized influence,
or charisma, may not be relevant for leaders in stable
public school environments. Some researchers have
begun to explore the idea that idealized influence, or
charisma, may be more appropriate in some situations
°
than in others. 8 For instance, idealized influence is
probably more appropriate when organizations are in
crisis and need to adapt than when environmental con-
ditions are stable-that is, when dissatisfaction is high
and value congruence and unquestioned obedience are
needed to ensure organizational survival. 81This line of
thinking is consistent with several contingency theories
Leadership Style
The contemporary heroes of education are people like Joe Clark who revitalized an inner-city
high school. Jaime Escalante who taught calculus to Hispanic youth, and Madeline Hunter
who brought research to classroom teachers. These are people with common characteristics:
a vision and the perseverance to actualize it. Their styles of interaction with others as they
pursue their visions are relatively constant although different.
Question: Is a person's leadership style really important?
Arguments PRO Arguments CON
1. Leaders have followers. The ways leaders work 1. Style is a means to achieve an end. Time spent
with their followers is important. In the worst pos- thinking about style is better invested in the devel-
sible scenario, followers rebel or withdraw, and the opment of good substantial ideas. People will follow
leader's vision remains a dream. leaders with good ideas.
2. An understanding of leadership style and the ability 2. School administrators are identified because
to flex one's style are important for school adminis- they have effective styles of working with people
trators. The context of administration changes, and to accomplish organizational goals. In most
situations differ. Able leaders are always open to instances, their styles remain the same over their
new ways of thinking about how to work better with careers.
people in a variety of situations.
3. Researchers investigating leadership style have iden- 3. The research on leadership style has not made the
tified several models that practicing administrators impact on education that other areas of inquiry
find useful. The value of this work is evident: Journal have made. Research and development funds are
articles on the topic are widely read; conference better spent on areas such as effective schools
sessions on leadership style are well attended; and where the impact is clear or ethics where the
books on leadership are on nonfiction best-seller lists. impact is needed.
4. Principals and superintendents lose their jobs be- 4. There is an old adage about success in administra-
cause their styles are incompatible with the values tion: the right person in the right job at the right
and/or norms of organizations. When the loss of high- time. As contexts change, career administrators
visibility leaders is analyzed in the popular press, change their jobs but not their styles.
leadership style invariably surfaces as the problem.

mational and Transactional Leadership Correlates of Effec-

tiveness and Satisfaction."
75Judge and Piccolo, "Transformational and Transactional
Leadership: A Meta-analytic Test of their Relative Validity."
76 KevinB. Lowe, K. Galen Kroeck, and Nagaraj Sivasubra-
manium, "Effectiveness Correlates of Transformational and
Transactional Leadership: A Meta-Analytic Review of the
MLQ Literature," Leadership Quarterly, 7 (1996): 385-425.
77 Barbara
Thompson and Fred C. Lunenburg, Superinten-
dents' Trans(ormational and Transactional Leadership Styles,
School Accountability Ratings, and School District Financial
and Demographic Factors, Paper Presented at the Annual
Meeting of the American Educational Research Association,
Chicago, IL, April 2003; Dana Pagani and Fred C. Lunenburg,
Principals' Transformational and Transactional Leadership
Styles, School Accountability Ratings, and School District
Financial and Demographic Factors, Paper Presented at the
Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Asso-
ciation, Chicago, IL, April 2003.
78Bernard M. Bass and Bruce J. Avolio, Full Range Leadership
Development: Manual for the Multifactor Leadership Ques-
tionnaire (Palo Alto, CA: Mindgarden, 1997).
79Fred
C. Lunenburg, Barbara Thompson, and Dana Pagani,
Transformational Leadership: Factor Structure of the Multifac-
tor Leadership Questionnaire, Paper Presented at the Annual
Meeting of the American Educational Research Association,
Denver, CO, May 4, 2010.
8°Caralyn P. Egri and Susan Herman, "Leadership in the North
American Environmental Sector: Values, Leadership Styles,
and Contexts of Environmental Leaders and Their Organiza-
tions," Academy of Management Journal, 43 (2000): 457-604;
Badrinarayan. S. Pawar and Kenneth K. Eastman, "The Na-
ture and Implications of Contextual Influences on Transfor-
mational Leadership: A Conceptual Examinatiqn," Academy
of Management Review, 22 (1997): 80-109.
81Bulach,Lunenburg, and Potter, Creating a Culture for High-
Performing Schools.
of leadership, which propose that individuals must
modify their behavior to fit the situation or find a situ-
ation that fits their leadership style. 82 Clearly, studying
transformational leadership in turbulent environments
might lead to a better understanding of idealized influ-
ence, or charisma.
82 Martin G. Evans, "The Effects of Supervisory Behavior on
the Path-Goal Relationship," Organizational Behavior and
Human Performance, 5 (1970): 277-298; Fred E. Fiedler and
Martin M. Chemers, Improving Leadership Effectiveness: The
Leader Match Concept, 2nd ed. (New York: Wiley, 1884);
Robert J. House, "A Path-Goal Theory of Leadership Effective-
ness: Administrative Science Quarterly, 16 (1971): 321-339);
Beverly J. Irby, Genevieve Brown, Jo Ann Du'ffy, and Diane
Trautmenn, "The Synergistic Leadership Theory," Journal of
Educational Administration, 40 (2002): 304-322.
However, the other three dimensions of transforma-
tional leadership (inspirational motivation, intellectual
stimulation, and individualized consideration) may be
very important in achieving leader effectiveness. This ap-
proach would be in agreement with Bennis and Nanus, 83
who studied 90 innovative leaders in industry and the
public sector and found that articulating a vision of the
future, emphasis on organizational and individual learn-
ing, and the development of commitment and trust were
the factors that characterized transformational lead-
ers. These results are consistent with the three public
school studies reported earlier. Similarly, Yukl 84 describes
83
Warren G. Bennis and Burt Nanus, Leaders: The Strategies
for Taking Charge (New York: HarperCollins, 2007).
84Yukl, Leadership in Organizations.
 PAl?TII · Administrative Processes
transformational leadership as influencing major changes
in organization members and building commitment
for the organization's goals. Thus, educational leaders
should communicate a sense of where the organization
is going, develop the skills and abilities of followers, and
encourage innovative problem solving.
Summary
1. The study of leadership has a long history, dating
back to Plato's Republic in 400 B.C. Many attempts
have been made to define leadership. One definition
of leadership accepted by many experts is the fol-
lowing: leadership is the process whereby one indi-
vidual influences other group members toward the
attainment of defined or organizational goals.
2. To fully understand what leadership is all about,
it is important to examine the difference between
leadership and management. The terms leadership
and management tend to be used interchangeably.
However, the two terms, although overlapping
at times, are not identic~l and need to be clearly
distinguished.
3. The scientific study of leadership began by concen-
trating on personal traits that distinguish leaders
from non-leaders and effective leaders from ineffec-
tive ones. Researchers have identified several such
traits: drive, integrity, leadership motivation, self-
confidence, intelligence, task-relevant knowledge,
emotional maturity, and flexibility.
4. The Big Five personality traits correlate highly with
Bass and Yuki's meta-analyses of leadership traits.
The Big Five model includes: surgency, agreeable-
ness, conscientiousness, emotional stability, and
intellectance.
5. Recent studies are indicating that another trait that
may indicate effective leadership is emotional intel-
ligence. Daniel Goleman's emotional intelligence
dimensions include: self-motivation, persistence,
impulse control, stress resistance, and empathy.
6. Another way of understanding leadership is to
compare the behaviors of effective and ineffective
leaders to see how successful leaders behave. The
focus shifts from trying to determine what effective
leaders are to trying to determine what effective
leaders do. The Iowa studies, Ohio State studies,
and Michigan studies identified distinct leader
behaviors.
CHAPTER5 · Leadership
7. Efforts to discover the one best set of leader traits 2. Using Table 5-2, what specific personal traits
and the one best set of leader behaviors has its limita- do you possess? What can you conclude from
tions. The idea that effective leadership behavior is this exercise about your readiness to assume a
contingent on the situation is more prevalent today.
leadership position?
Fiedler's contingency theory, Evans and House's path-
3. Evaluate yourself on emotional intelligence using
goal theory, Tannenbaum and Schmidt's leadership
Table 5-3 developed by Daniel Goleman. What
style continuum, Reddin's three-dimensional leader-
can you conclude about your readiness to assume a
ship styles, and Hersey and Blanchard's situational
leadership role from this exercise?
leadership theory has been useful in this regard.
4. Where do you place yourself on The Leadership
8. Other contemporary perspectives include the
Grid (Figure 5-2)? What can you conclude about
synergistic leadership theory, leader-member your readiness to assume a leadership position from
exchange theory, reciprocal influence theory, substi- this exercise?
tutes for leadership, and transformational leadership.
5. What function does the situation or context play in
the use of one or another style of leadership? Dis-
KeyTerms cuss each one of the contingency and style theories
of leadership to determine the role that situation
leadership
plays in choosing an appropriate leadership style for
formal leaders
a given situation.
informal leaders
leaders 6. Examine the other contemporary theories of leader-
managers ship: synergistic leadership theory, leader-member
personal traits exchange theory, reciprocal influence theory,
emotional intelligence substitutes for leadership, and transformational
authoritarian leadership leadership. As a leader, how could you apply each of
democratic leadership these theories in a work setting?
laissez-faire leadership
initiating structure
consideration Suggested Readings
production-centered leader
employee-centered leader Collins, Jim. Good to Great: Why Some Companies
Make the Leap ... and Others Don't (New York:
Leadership Grid
contingency theory HarperCollins, 2001). Although Good to Great
is geared more toward business, its concepts can
path-goal theory
directive leader be applied to any field. The research identified
supportive leader seven characteristics of companies that successfully
participative leader moved from mediocrity to greatness and sustained
achievement-oriented leader that level of performance for fifteen years. Those
three-dimensional model characteristics included the involvement of "level 5"
situational leadership theory leaders; the importance of getting the right people
synergistic leadership theory "on the bus"; confronting the brutal facts as a
leader-member exchange theory basis for improvement; identification of what an
reciprocal influence theory organization does better than any other organiza-
substitutes for leadership tion; the existence of a culture of discipline; and
transactional leadership the understanding that technology is an accelerator,
transformational leadership not a cause, of improvement. All these qualities of
good-to-great companies were undergirded by what
is callee!the flywheel concept-the idea that there
DiscussionQuestions is no single defining action that leads to success.
Rather, the study showed that consistent, day-to-
1. Evaluate your boss using Table 5-1, Comparisons day actions aligned with the organization's basic
between Leadership and Management. What can and unifying idea-its hedgehog concept-guided
you conclude from the profile derived? it to success. With each push of the flywheel, the
organization gathered momentum on its journey
toward greatness.
Covey, Stephen R. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective
People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change (New
York: Simon & Schuster, 2004). This book conveys
a "principle-centered, character-based, inside-out
approach to personal and interpersonal effective-
ness." Covey's habits are based on principles-
deep, fundamental truths that become guidelines
for behavior. His discussion of behavior is almost
biblical as he speaks to the importance of honesty,
integrity, courage, and compassion. One of the most
influential segments of his book addresses the value
of a personal mission statement. He entices the
reader to "begin with the end in mind" and to live
life accordingly.
Freiberg, Kevin, and Jackie Freiberg. Nuts! Southwest
Airlines' Crazy Recipe for Business and Personal
Success (Belmont, CA: Thomson South-Western ,
2001). As you read the book, you begin to get a
sense of the learning community that exists within
the company. This is built upon a system of trust,
risk taking, passion for the work, and celebration
of individual and team contributions. It is easy to
make the connection to the work in public educa-
tion in which we are engaged. For strong believers
in the power of relationships in our work, this book
reinforces the conviction that it is the people in the
organization that make the difference.
Gladwell, Malcolm. The Tipping Point: How Little
Things Can Make a Difference (New York: Little,
Brown, 2006). Gladwell begins by introducing the
concept of "The Law of the Few," or (more specifi-
cally) how social epidemics are often driven by a
few exceptional people-people with unique and
powerful communications skills, people with a
rare set of social gifts. In his treatise on "tipping
points," Gladwell identifies three specific types of
exceptional people or messengers who make "The
Law of the Few" work: Connectors, Mavens, and
Persuaders. He also notes that in creating epidemics,
the messenger is critical; it is only through outstand-
ing messengers that an epidemic spreads. Identifying
and cultivating those who are not only Mavens and
Connectors but also Persuaders can be of amazing
value in moving forward the agenda of a district.
Gladwell, Malcolm. Blink: The Power of Thinking
without Thinking (New York: Little, Brown, 2007).
In Blink, Malcolm Gladwell proposes a new name
for an old concept of decision making-intuition-
and provides psychological explanations for how it